For The Girl
by Moonless Silver
Summary: Sometimes a single star may move very rapidly with respect to it's fellows. Eventually such stars leave an old constellation and enter a new one. ...Quote by Carl Sagan... Urahara x OC
1. Kanehara Satsuki

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, and I'm pretty sure everyone knows that. Nobody who owns Bleach would be writing fan-fictions, would they? Kanehara, however, is mine.**

* * *

_BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. _Satsuki Kanehara rolled over to slap her alarm clock, and the incessant beeping ceased immediately. She groggily opened her eyes, and it took her a moment to focus them. The digital display read 7:30am.

The sunlight streamed through the curtains of her small, one-paned window, lighting the straw yellow color of her walls. A lonely, wooden bookshelf stood in the corner by the bathroom, its shelves almost bare, except for a few books and other belongings. Kanehara yawned, stretched, and stumbled out of bed. She untangled her foot from the cloud-print comforter, and hobbled over to her small and cramped ensuite bathroom. Kanehara rubbed her left eye and reached for the tap, twisted the cheap and broken plastic, and splashed her face with the little dribble that came out. Turning the tap off again, she reached for an old, used face towel. She flicked off the light, casting the tiny blue bathroom into semi-darkness and shut the door.

Kanehara re-entered her bedroom, quickly tidied her bed, brushed out her waist-length blue hair, guided by her reflection, and clipped her bangs out of her eyes. She changed from her burgundy flannel pajamas and into her gray school uniform, red bow and white socks included.

She grabbed the gray shoulder bag from the end of her bed, and dashed to the door. She reached into the yellowed and outdated fridge next to it, snatched her pre-made lunch she had prepared the night before, tucked it inside her bag, slipped into her shoes, and left her apartment, locking the door quietly behind her. Kanehara slowly climbed the stairs down, and made her way around the corner to the busy street below.

* * *

She made a dash for the bus stop, her hair flying behind her. The teen glanced back over her shoulder; the eight-o'clock was fast approaching. She had fifty feet to go. Thirty. Twenty. _Come on_, Kanehara urged herself, _Almost there!_ Suddenly, Kanehara stumbled; her shoe had caught a crack in the sidewalk. _Kuso! _She inwardly cursed, as the bus rumbled on past. The dust cloud the bus had brought settled around her, and she coughed as she pushed herself up. A stinging made Kanehara look back down at her knees, both had been skinned, and now were bloody. 

"Just what I need." She mumbled angrily, pushing herself up and picking up her bag.

"Are you alright?" a kind and aged voice asked from behind her. "That was quite a tumble."

Kanehara turned to find an old man hunched over his cane looking up at her with curious brown eyes from below thick silver eyebrows. He wore a summery red button-up t-shirt with khaki pants and plastic sandals. The top of his head shone slightly in the sunlight, with a few wisps of silvery hair clinging around the base of his skull. His short silver beard, unlike his hair, was thick and full. He smiled at Kanehara, his wrinkled and droopy skin making him look slightly like an old pug.

"Thank you, I'm alright, but I'm late for school, I'm sorry!" She apologized and bowed quickly "Good-bye, ojisan." Kanehara turned and dashed off down the sidewalk in the direction the bus had gone.

The old man stroked his short beard with his free hand, turned away, and dissolved into thin air.

* * *

Stopping every block or so, Kanehara panting, sweating, and with many cramps, eventually made it to school. She glanced up at the giant clock high over the entrance; she was 2 hours late. "Kuso!" she cursed out loud, and made her way into school. With ever stair she took, _Kuso!_ resounded inside her mind. Kanehara slowly climbed her way to the second floor, her heart steadying itself back to its normal beating, her breathing slowed. She located her classroom, and slid the door sideways. The entirety of the classroom froze, and all eyes were on her. _What a sight I must be…_Kanehara thought tucking a lock of windswept blue hair behind her ear. _Bloody knees, tired, and breathing heavily? Kuso...  
_  
The classroom looked as it always did; white walls scattered with motivational posters and kanji, the blackboard heavily laden with notes, and the neat columns of desks perfectly lined up one  
behind the other. The windows had their shutters pushed up, letting the morning sun shine in, shining on the linoleum-tiled floor.

"Kanehara-san, you have some explaining to do." The teacher glanced over at her, her eyebrow arched accusingly. Some students in the back snickered and whispered. Kanehara felt her cheeks burn as the teacher came over, and slid the door closed behind her. 

"Now, how do you explain your tardiness and appearance?" The voice was like salt in her scraped knees.

"I'm sorry, sensei. I missed the bus and fell, so I ran to school. I'm sorry." Kanehara stared at the floor, and bowed, never meeting her cold, steely blue gaze.

"You will stand here until the end of class." The teacher sighed, and slid back through the sliding doors, shutting them behind her.

Kanehara closed her eyes, and heard the giggles and mocking chatter about her sudden and strange appearance. She hung her head, and gripped the handle on her bag tighter in both hands.

* * *

The bell rang, and Kanehara's head snapped up, it was lunch. She slid the door open and walked in quick strides to where she sat, three seats down and in the second row. _I wish I could've sat in the back, and then there wouldn't be so much staring. _She glanced over at the long-haired redhead who sat next to her. Her large gray eyes were innocently curious and she smiled when Kanehara made eye contact. 

"What happened Kanehara-san?" Inoue asked, turning in her seat so that she was facing Kanehara, her brow slightly furrowed in concern. "Your knees look like they hurt a lot! What happened?"

Kanehara couldn't help but smile, Inoue Orihime was always blissfully ignorant of what everyone else was saying or thinking, and she could always make everyone smile.

"I missed the bus and tripped, so I had to run to school." Kanehara sighed, and looked down at her now scabbed knees. "My knees don't hurt too much, it's okay Inoue-san." She looked up and smiled.

Inoue nodded and clapped her hands together, smiling brightly.

"Today I have an anchovy, pickle, peanut butter and jam sandwich!" She opened her bento and proudly showed Kanehara her creation. "Want some? We can share!" She smiled brightly again.

"Uh, it's alright Inoue-san! I brought my own lunch today, but thanks for offering!" Kanehara said quickly, shaking her hands in front of her, and smiling falsely.

"That's alright, Kanehara-san!" Inoue smiled, and shrugged, digging in to her lunch.

_That girl needs some serious cooking lessons,_ Kanehara thought and smiled, and sweatdropped when Tatsuki looked over at Inoue's newest 'masterpiece', her expression mildly horrified.

* * *

**********Author's Note: That's my first chapter! I encourage you to reply or flame, whatever floats your boat. This is a very, very short chapter but they do get better, I assure you.**

**********Read and review!  
**


	2. Of Shinigami and Hollows

**Disclaimer: If you've forgotten, please re-read chapter one's disclaimer.**

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Kanehara lay on her side, facing the wall. Moonlight streamed through the part in her curtains, giving everything it touched a bluish glow. She rolled over and slid out of bed, the digital display read 9:14pm, her footsteps on the generic carpeting making no noise as she walked over to her window, pulling back the thick blue curtains, and slid the glass sideways. A sudden gust of night air tossed a stray lock of hair to dance across her face. Kanehara tucked it behind her ear, and leaned on her elbows on the windowsill, her head resting in her hands. She tilted her gaze upwards to the sky. The gentle wind had blown away the clouds, and the stars were visible, twinkling and winking high above the sleeping turmoil of the city. Kanehara spotted Polaris, the North Star, and the Little Dipper, the constellation brought back a wave of nostalgia. 

_"Okaasan? What's that one called?" I asked, pointing to a group of stars far above, and turned to face my mother._

_"That one's called the Little Dipper, Satsu-chan. There's a bigger Dipper. Can you find it?"  
Okaasan smiled, her green eyes reflecting the moonlight._

_After a moment of searching, I shook my head, my blue pigtails wobbling. I looked up at my mother again._

_"Where is it, Okaasan?" I asked with my eyebrows raised. Mother always knew the answer to everything. "Is it hiding?"_

_She laughed, a wonderful noise that I never got tired of hearing, like the tinkling of tiny silver bells._

_"Maybe it is! Let's let it hide then." She took me in her arms and carried me back across the room and placed me back in bed. I caught a whiff of her perfume, lilacs and peppermint. Nothing ever smelt as good as her perfume, I remember trying to find something that did._

_"Good night Satsu-chan." She kissed my forehead. My small fingers ran through her long chocolate hair._

_"Good night, Okaasan."_

Kanehara sighed, closing her eyes, recalling as clear as though it were yesterday the scent of her mother's perfume. _Still today,_ she thought, _nothing smells as good._

A sudden, ear-splitting, blood-curdling roar rent the air. Kanehara jumped, her eyes wide and her adrenaline flowing. The peaceful serenity of the night was broken again by the same horribly chilling shriek again, twice. Kanehara leaped to the windowsill leaning out of the open window rapidly searching for something to tell her what made that sound that could not have been made by neither man nor beast. Then she felt it. The overwhelming change in atmosphere nearly brought her to her knees, Kanehara could barely breathe, the air had rapidly become so thick. Suddenly a blur of black and orange bolted past her window.

Kanehara rose with difficulty, following the blur over rooftop to rooftop until it halted. She squinted, the figure looked strangely familiar. Faintly, a female voice yelled "Ichigo!" _That sounded like Kuchiki-san…_ Then she realized the figure five rooftops over was Kurosaki Ichigo. _Then it must've been Kuchiki-san! But why is he dressed in those clothes? Why-_ Kanehara froze.

A giant and terrible monster had reared it's head over the rooftops, it's blood-thirsty face grinning in a terrifying way, right before Kurosaki. _What is he thinking?! _Kanehara's heart was pounding inside her chest, threatening to explode. _What is that thing?! Is he crazy?! Kuchiki-san is there as well! _Kanehara came to a solid resolution.  
_  
_ "I have to help them." She whispered, confusing even herself with the finality in which she said that.

* * *

_  
_She dashed across her bedroom, hastily slipped her shoes on, threw open her front door, locking it quickly behind her, and nearly fell down the stairs she was running so fast. She followed the terrible echoing screams of the behemoth through street after street, never paying any attention to her surroundings, never realizing how fast the adrenaline was making her run.  
Despite the overwhelming pressure forcing her down, she ran until she was at the foot of the building where Kurosaki was. Kanehara sensed movement on her right side and quickly looked over to see Inoue, Ishida and Yasutora were running towards the monster as well.

"Inoue…san?" she asked aloud. _Why are they here?!  
_  
The creature shrieked again and Kanehara remembered with a jolt why she was there. She glanced up at the building, and saw a steel ladder that was bolted to the bricks. Without thinking, she began to climb. Rung after rung, faster, faster, _Faster!_ She urged herself. Kanehara reached the roof, and clambered on top.

Kurosaki hadn't seen her yet, she was behind him, and all his attention was on the monster. The thing reared its head, screaming and swung a clawed hand at him.

"ICHIGO!" Kanehara screamed without thinking. She bolted and knocked him down, so that the claw of the giant beast grazed her back. Pain seared through her body like poison, and she could feel the warm blood running down her back.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Kurosaki shouted; she could hear the fury in his voice.

The monster screamed and swung the other claw at both of them. Her eyes squeezed shut against the pain, and she bit her lip not to cry out. An arm grabbed her around the middle roughly and she felt her body leave the ground, and heard the sound of shattering roof tiles.

"Stay with Rukia!" Kurosaki ordered fiercely, then she felt someone hold her gently and felt the cool cement of the ground against her body.

"What were you thinking?! Idiot! You could have been killed!" Kuchiki hissed.

"I'm sorry, Kuchiki-san… I just wanted to help…" Kanehara whispered, her eyes opened half way.

"Idiot!" she heard Kuchiki say again, but this time, her voice was less angry and more concerned. "Your back is bleeding pretty bad, but Orihime can handle it-"

Something must have struck Kuchiki, because she suddenly darted around and knelt next to Kanehara and cupped her face in her hands.

"How come you can see the Hollow?! How come you can see Ichigo?!" she demanded, her eyes burning with such intensity it left Kanehara momentarily speechless.

"I don't know… Hollow? That thing, you mean? I don't know… I can just see it… Its screams are so…" Kanehara moaned from the pain and confusion, closing her eyes against the murderous cries of the behemoth. _What's going on?!_

"Why did you follow us?!" Kuchiki demanded, shaking Kanehara's head gently to rouse her. "Why did you follow us?! Tell me what the hell you were thinking!" she demanded again, more urgently.

"I don't know… I saw Kurosaki-san, and I… wanted to help him." She clenched her teeth to stop her from screaming. "That thing was going to kill him! I couldn't stand and do nothing when someone I knew was being attacked!" Kanehara growled, clenching her fists against the firey pain surging down her back.

"That's why?! You nearly got yourself killed! You can't help him! You shouldn't even be able to see him at all!"

Kanehara opened her eyes, tears of pain forming in the corners."If I'm not supposed to, how can I?" she pleaded, her words strained with the effort of forming them.

Kuchiki remained silent for a moment, their gazes met and for a moment, the only sounds that were heard were the shouts from the other four and the blood-chilling roars of the beast.

Their gaze was broken as Kuchiki looked up and past Kanehara. Kanehara's eyes closed and the tears she had tried to hold back ran down her cheeks. She heard running footsteps coming towards her from behind, which halted.

"Kanehara-san!" She heard Inoue shriek.

"Orihime-san, take care of her wounds." Kuchiki said.

"Yes, Kuchiki-san." Inoue's voice trembled. Kanehara thought she heard Inoue whisper something, but her head was too full of the pain from the claw marks the giant Hollow had left on her back and what Kuchiki had just said. _What's going on?!_

"Ichigo, I need to talk to you…" Kuchiki's voice drifted off, and Kanehara heard two pairs of retreating footsteps.

"Oh, Kanehara-san… Why did you follow?" Inoue whispered.

Kanehara's consciousness began to dwindle, she felt like she was enveloped in a bubble of warmth. _What's... Going on? _The last thing she remembered seeing, was a golden light through her eyelids, before she lost consciousness.

* * *

**Author's Note: I've only seen up to episode 95, so everything in this story will be from 95 backwards. If I watch more, then the information in the story will change as well. It is very strange to have to write all their last names, but that is what Kanehara knows them as.**

**edit: I've seen up to episode 137 now.**

**Read and review!**


	3. Paradigm Shift

**Disclaimer: Sigh If you've forgotten, you are very dense, and should not be reading this. But, if you've remembered, congratulations! You're not dense.  
**

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Kanehara slowly opened her eyes and surveyed an unfamiliar scene. _I had the weirdest nightmare last night..._ She thought. Her sight came into focus and a wooden ceiling was what she saw. Dawn's early light shone through the window's thin curtains, lighting the room with a faint golden glow. She sat up, the covers falling away quietly, and realized her pajamas had been taken, and she was now wrapped in a light blue haori, and her chest and back had been bandaged neatly and throughly. A sharp pain shot up her back as she moved, and she cringed, jerking forward slightly. 

_What the hell happened last night?! That monster must've been real! I still have the injuries! What the HELL?! I don't get it! What-?_

Hushed voices drew her attention; they were coming from the room over. She stopped to listen, her heart pounding like it had the night before.

"-It's not like before, Ichigo, I can't erase her memory. If she can see you in Shinigami form, it wouldn't matter. She would remember if she saw another Hollow or your Shinigami form."

"Well then, what are we supposed to do?!"

"Kanehara-san is my friend, I know her; she wouldn't betray our secret-"

"We can't tell her!"

"Ichigo!" A deep voice shushed him. "Kanehara-san is still asleep. Tessai was kind enough to allow us to keep Kanehara-san here, but none of us wants her woken up just yet."

Kurosaki made a growl of frustration.

"Ishida? Any ideas?"

A pause.

"We could always ask Urahara."

A long silence followed Ishida's words.

Kanehara frowned in confusion. _What are they all talking about? Urahara? Tessai? Shinigami? WHAT'S GOING ON?!  
_  
"Yes, I suppose Ishida's idea is valid. Ichigo?"

"Alright, we'll ask Sandal Hat when he wakes up."

"Inoue-san? Please check up on Kanehara-san, see that she is still sleeping."

"Okay."

Footsteps drew near the sliding paper door, and Kanehara pulled the covers up, and tried to lie down without too much noise. She moved too quickly and a bolt of pain shot up her back again. Kanehara gasped in pain just as the door slid open.

"Kanehara-san!" Inoue gasped in surprise.

A hushed silence fell in the other room. Inoue quickly stepped into her room and slid the door quickly behind her. Kanehara sighed and sat up again. Inoue crossed the mahogany wood floor onto the forest green rug and knelt beside Kanehara's futon.

"How much did you hear, Kanehara-san?" Inoue asked, her gray eyes surveying Kanehara cautiously.

"Enough to confuse me!" She yelled, and bolt upright. "Who's Urahara?! What's a Shinigami?!! What's going on?! What the hell was that thing?! A Hollow?!"

Inoue bit her lip, looking as though she was about to cry.

"I don't know if I can answer all your questions, Urahara-san would have to give permission first." Her voice trembled, and tucked her red hair behind her ear, looking down.

Kanehara opened her mouth to apologize for yelling at Inoue, but her pain and furious confusion overruled her guilt.

"Urahara-san owns this store, and lives here as well." Inoue said quietly, still averting her gaze to the floor.

Kanehara sat, staring at the forest green wall. _THAT STILL DOESN'T ANSWER MY QUESTIONS! _she wanted to shout at Inoue, but Kanehara knew the she had already pushed the poor girl far enough, and balled her fists and clenched her teeth.

"Kanehara-san?" Inoue asked fearfully, worried. "Are you okay?"

Kanehara shook her head stiffly, her jaw still tight, trying not to explode at Inoue.

"Good morning, everyone!" came a cheery voice from behind the door, breaking the tense silence. "Now, where is this girl that you brought here? Is she still sleeping?"

"Urahara-san! Good morning, no, she's awake, but-"

The door to the room Kanehara and Inoue were in opened with a flourish, and there in the doorway stood a man. He jumped forward, which Kanehara thought was an amazing feat, despite her anger, in those sandals and landed in a crouching position next to her.

"So cute!" he beamed and put his hands on Kanehara's cheeks, tilting her face upwards. "And your eyes! Such a pretty shade of green!"

_Cute?!_ the blue-haired teen thought dangerously. _This guy is walking on some seriously thin ice._ Kanehara flushed, embarrassed and furious. The man laughed. She noticed that his face was half shadowed from his green and white striped beach hat he wore, and that his eyes were gray, like Inoue's.

"What's your name?" he asked, still smiling and holding her face.

"Kanehara Satsuki. You must be Urahara-san." Kanehara said shortly, her eyes narrowed, and inclined her head stiffly with her cheeks still pink.

"Satsuki, huh? I see they've already introduced me, but I'll do it again. My name is Urahara Kisuke, and I am the manager of this store." He bowed slightly, and let go of her cheeks but was still smiling.

"Now, what seems to be the problem, Kurosaki-kun?" Urahara asked, straightening up and turning to face Kurosaki. Everyone had entered the room while Urahara was fussing over Kanehara, and Ichigo crossed his arms.

"She can see me in Shinigami form." He said, his eyes not leaving Urahara.

"Ooh, can she now?" Urahara glanced back down at Kanehara. "Well, how strong is her spirit power? Ishida-kun?" _Spirit power?!_

Ishida pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose and hid his face from Kanehara's sight.  
"As strong as Kurosaki-san's younger sister's, Karin, maybe even stronger. Karin can also see Hollows and Shinigami."

"Any powers?" Urahara asked curiously. "Kuchiki-san?" _POWERS?! What the HELL?!_

"Not that we saw." Kuchiki said glancing down at Kanehara.

"Hmm." Urahara said, and then crouched back down to face Kanehara. "It seems you've caused us quite the predicament, Satsu-chan. What should we do with you?"

Kanehara froze at the sound of the name her mother used to call her by. Her heart was pounding in her ears.

Urahara frowned in concern. "Something wrong?"

Kanehara found her voice again. "No, Urahara-san. But…" she looked at everyone standing near the entrance. "Could _someone_ tell me what's going on here?!" she snapped, glaring.

Urahara didn't turn around, but he addressed everyone "Everyone, if you could excuse us, but if I could talk with Satsu-chan alone, it would be much easier." They complied and filed out, some looked back over their shoulders at Kanehara. Urahara sat down beside Kanehara and stretched, yawning quietly. He seemed completely oblivious to the Kanehara's anger.

* * *

"Now, what would you like me to clarify?" he asked, smiling slightly. Kanehara, looked down at her clasped hands. 

"Firstly, why do you call me Satsu-_chan_?!" she hissed, fuming.

Urahara looked thoughtful. "Does the name bother you?"

Kanehara narrowed her eyes. "No, it's what my mother used to call me."

Urahara laughed gently. "Is that why? Your mother called you it? Would she mind if I used it, also?"

"I don't know. I can't really ask her. She died when I was nine, just after my father died." Kaneara snapped. Urahara fell silent and Kanehara stared at the wall again.

"I'm sorry, to have lost both your parents at such a young age. So sad." Kanehara met Urahara's gaze; his blue-gray eyes were filled with sympathy.

"It's okay." She glared at the manager, then began firing off the burning questions that were festering inside her. "What the hell are Hollows?! Shinigami?! Why am I causing everyone so much _stress_?!" Kanehara demanded, her green eyes blazing.

Urahara sighed and pulled down his hat. "A Hollow is a spirit that that lost its heart to despair or remained in the real world for too long. Any spirit that is not guided to Soul Society by a Shinigami may eventually descend into a Hollow." He explained quietly, the smile had been replaced by a serious look. "Your next question, what is a Shinigami? Well, I told you already what they are. They are from Soul Society to guide spirits there and to purify Hollows so they can also go to Soul Society. Every Shinigami has a Zanpakto, a Soul Reaper, which they use to send spirits to Soul Society. Kurosaki-kun is one, Kuchiki-san is one, and I was also one." Urahara finished.

"And now, your last question. Why are you causing everyone so much stress? Well," he chuckled quietly. "They don't know what to make of you! If they erased your memories of last night, you would only regain them if you saw another Hollow or a Shinigami, which would entirely defeat that purpose!" he laughed again. "They don't know if they should let you in on their secrets or not, they don't know how much spirit power you have." He smiled. "I think they're being rather hot-headed about this, and should listen to Inoue-san, she had the right idea."

Kanehara's anger faltered for a moment, and she almost hesitated when she spoke again. "What are you going to do with me?"

Urahara laughed, and took her face in his hands again. "First you're going to heal up, then I'm going to train you."

"Train me? But-" Kanehara was cut off by Urahara who put his finger to his lips.

"You do have potential, but you will work hard. On the weekends, so you don't miss school. It will be suspicious if you go missing so suddenly." He said simply. "Now, rest up, you only have two days to recover, so start sleeping. Ururu will bring you meals."

Kanehara looked up at Urahara, disbelieving his cheery attitude."Thanks." She said slowly, frowning cautiously up at the green-clad man. _How is he being so cheerful? I've been nothing but horrible to him!  
_  
"Think nothing of it!" Urahara chuckled and stood up. He walked back to the sliding door, opened it, and slid it back behind him.

* * *

**Author's Note: I'm doing my best to portray everyone as they should be, but it is very difficult.  
**

**Read and review!**


	4. The Morning After

**Disclaimer: If you haven't gotten it by now, read ten other Bleach fanfictions, and tell me what the disclaimers say. None of us own Bleach. We may wish that we did, but we don't. Get over it. You'll survive.  
**

* * *

Kanehara laid back down, her back burned like it was on fire, and thought about everything that just happened. _What. The. Hell. _She thought. _My life has turned upside down. My classmates have formed an underground army for the dead, I was called cute by some sandal-wearing dude, I was nearly killed by some freaky monster, and now I'm going to be trained to discover my powers. Greeaaaaaat. _

She closed her eyes and rolled onto her side, staring up at the curtain-drawn window. The sun was up now; the room was brighter. It was the first time she could look around the room. It was sparse, not a lot of furniture was in this room. A bookshelf stood in one corner, facing the end of her futon, and filled with dusty volumes of forgotten lore.

Kanehara sighed in frustration and closed her eyes, exhausted from everything that had happened, still furious, and mulled over what she had just heard from Urahara, when consciousness finally slipped from her, and she fell into a deep slumber once more.

* * *

"Excuse me, Kanehara-san?"

Kanehara rolled over, winced, and opened her eyes to the smallest and most timid looking girl she had ever seen. She blinked and raised her eyebrows.

"I brought you your lunch, I'm sorry I couldn't bring you breakfast, but you were sound asleep, I couldn't wake you up." The black haired girl's sad blue eyes surveyed her.

Kanehara sat up, failing to ignore the excruciating pain, and looked back over at the girl.

"It's alright. Who are you?" Kanehara asked , frowning.

"My name is Tsumigiya Ururu, Kanehara-san." Ururu bowed her head, and placed the tray of food next to Kanehara.

"You can call me Satsuki if you want, Urahara-san has no problem with it." Kanehara said, her voice less angry than it had been a few hours ago.

"Okay. Satsuki-san, please eat up." Ururu said, looking up at Kanehara. Kanehara blinked again, thinking there was something oddly robotic about the way Ururu answered.

"Alright, Ururu. Thank you for bringing it in." She forced a pleasant smile. _I might as well be nice to her, she looks even more fragile than Inoue!_

Ururu nodded, her blue eyes as sad as ever, stood up and exited through the sliding door.  
Kanehara picked up the tray of food and placed it on her lap. Udon, two onigiri, and a green tea was what her lunch was, and her stomach rumbled loudly.

* * *

It had only been fifteen minutes after she had finished her lunch, and Kanehara had just lain down to take another sleep, when the sliding door opened. _Can't I get a bit of sleep?_ she thought incredulously. She looked around to see Urahara. 

"Good afternoon, Satsu-chan!" Urahara greeted her brightly. "How are you feeling?"

"Good afternoon, Urahara-san. I'm fine, thanks." Kanehara replied, still unaware of the mysterious reason that made this man was so cheery.

Urahara laughed as he knelt down, taking his sandals off and laying them beside him. "Still angry?" he chuckled, "You don't have to be hostile, you know. I just came in to check up on you."

"I'm fine. Thanks." Kanehara said again, looking up at Urahara.

The blonde chuckled again, pulling his hat off and looking down at her. "I thought I should tell you that everyone has left, but Kuchiki-san and Inoue-san will be checking up on you tonight." He said, while turning his hat over in his hands.

Kanehara's eyebrows rose. "Are they coming back?" she asked, and couldn't hide the note of apprehension in her voice.

Urahara stopped spinning his hat and looked down at her with his blue-gray eyes. "Of course! Kurosaki-kun and Ishida-kun are coming Sunday night to retrieve you." He smiled, his blue-gray eyes meeting Kanehara's

"Don't fret. I'm not going to hurt you." Urahara grinned and chuckled, and put his hat back on, pulling it low over his eyes. He bent to pick up Kanehara's empty tray, and stood up, stepping easily back into his sandals.

"I trust you enjoyed your lunch?" He asked with a crooked smile, looking back down at her.

Kanehara nodded. "Ururu's cooking is very good." She said honestly, holding back any sarcastic remark that might escape her lips.

Urahara laughed again, and he grinned. "Ururu didn't cook this, Tessai did!" he said, chuckling. "I'll tell him to introduce himself later, I have things to attend to." He added, and walked back towards the door. "Oh, and one more thing, Satsu-chan?" Urahara turned and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Yes?" Kanehara asked, her blue eyebrows raised.

"Try to smile more often, it does wonders for your health." He said simply, and walked out through the sliding door.

_How does he do it? _Kanehara wondered in confusion, slowly laying back down and fell asleep within minutes.

* * *

The next time Kanehara was awoken, her room was dark and there was a hulking figure silhouetted in the door frame. She sat bolt upright, clutching the comforter to her chin. A deep, rich laughter rang out and filled the room. The colossal figure lifted an arm and flicked on the light switch. Kanehara realized that the giant standing in the doorway wasn't a monster, but a very tall man with lots of muscles. He pushed his square-lensed glasses up the bridge of his nose and cleared his throat.

"Don't be frightened, Kanehara-san, you can call me Tessai." He smiled underneath his long brown mustache and laughed loudly again.

"Nice to meet you." Kanehara said, her eyes still wide in amazement. "So, you are the one who cooked my lunch?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. _I didn't think he'd be so big..._

"That would be correct!" He chuckled. "So, you can see Hollows, huh? They're terrifying, if I do say so myself." Tessai walked across the room and sat down.

Kanehara nodded feebly in agreement.

"I don't know how I can see them, though. It seems I've caused a very big problem for everyone." She said, chewing on her lower lip thoughtfully.

Tessai chuckled. "Urahara was right, you are very cute."

_I. Am. Not. Cute. _She growled mentally.

Tessai grinned. "The reason you can see Hollows is because you have a very large amount of reiatsu hidden inside you."

Kanehara looked up with interest. "What's reiatsu?" she asked, raising her eyebrow again.

"Reiatsu is what some people are blessed with, it basically the strength of their soul. For some people, like Kurosaki-san, their spirit power is so strong, only those who have spirit power can feel it, it can overwhelm your senses." Tessai said, crossing his arms.

Kanehara was silent, memories from the previous night surfacing. She could clearly remember the crushing pressure that she had felt when Kurosaki passed her window. She must've had a glazed look on her face because Tessai asked her if she was okay.

"I'm fine." She hoped she'd said that for the last time.

Tessai chuckled and stood up. "Dinner will be served in just a moment, Ururu will bring it in." He said. Like so many people before him, Tessai exited the room, sliding the door closed behind him.

* * *

After another delicious meal, and a visit from Kuchiki and Inoue, Kanehara was so tired and sore, that as soon as she closed her eyes, she fell instantly into a deep sleep. She didn't even hear the door open or the soft clacking of wooden sandals cross her floor.

Urahara crouched beside the sleeping Kanehara and pulled her blanket up, so she wouldn't get cold, and picked up the empty tray of dinner dishes. He stood and watched her for a moment, then all that was hear was the soft clacking of wooden sandals retreating, the flick of the light switch, and the sliding door shutting.

* * *

**Author's Note: This chapter is a bit shorter, but I that's where I had planned to finish it.**

**Read and review!**


	5. Calming The Nerves

**Disclaimer: Okay, this is the fifth time I've had to type this for all you numbskulls who can't remember that I DON'T OWN BLEACH. So here it goes: I DON'T OWN BLEACH. Ta daa. I dunno what you were waiting for, an explosion of confetti? Yeah right. Nice try.  
**

* * *

"Satsu-chan!" a cheerful singsong voice called her. Kanehara stirred slightly and opened her green eyes. 

"Oh good! You're awake! Good morning, Satsu-chan!" the blonde store manager said, beaming down at her from his crouched position. Kanehara sat up and stared at Urahara.

"Good morning, Urahara-san." She smiled bitterly, then a yawn hit her, and she stretched. "Sorry." She said, stretching again. Urahara chuckled.

"See? Smiling isn't that difficult, is it?" he grinned. Kanehara glowered.

"Okay then, get up, sleepy-head! I'm going to give you a tour of the building." Urahara said, offering her a hand. She took it hesitantly, and he helped her to her feet and waited until she had balanced herself.

"It's always good to walk around a bit and stretch, so you don't feel so lazy." He said, opening the door for her, and she stepped through. The room she stepped into must have been the living room, because there was a large, low square table in the center on top of a large forest green rug, like the rug she had in her room. To her left and through another sliding door, looked like it was the entrance. Shoes were paired neatly; Kanehara picked hers out easily enough.

"This is where we have meetings, eat meals, etcetera. How did you sleep, Satsu-chan?" Urahara added in curiously, walking close behind her.

"Fine, thanks. It's a very nice table." She added, noticing the fine grains and rich brown color.

"Yes, it is. It's a family heirloom. Next is the kitchen." He lead her around the table through another doorway and into a larger room furnished with an over, refrigerator, counter and cupboards.

"It's so big!" Kanehara's emerald green eyes widened and she looked around at everything. "May I…?" she looked back at Urahara, her eyebrows raised. He chuckled and nodded.

She hid a smile and began to walk around the kitchen, examining everything. _I've never seen such new machinery, my kitchen…Well, what I have of a kitchen, looks so dull and dilapidated compared to all this!_ She opened a few cupboards and in every one was either dishes or food.

"Cool." She whispered, admiring the spotless kitchen.

"Having fun?" Urahara asked, smiling crookedly, watching her.

Kanehara glanced back at him, and walked back over. "Thank you, Urahara-san." The corners of her mouth twitched.

"You looked as though everything was new to you, don't you have a kitchen?" he asked, his head tilting to one side.

Kanehara looked away. "I do, but… Since my parents died, I've been living off my inheritance." She drifted off awkwardly, flushing. Urahara was silent again.

Kanehara looked up, her face cleared of the previous emotion. "So," she asked with her eyebrows raised. "Shall we continue?"

Urahara's eyebrows rose slightly, but he smiled gently. "I suppose I'll show you the upstairs." He said, and led her out of the kitchen, back into the living room, and they turned left again and he let her go up the stairs first, and followed close behind.

The reached the landing, Kanehara in one piece, and Urahara opened the first door. He moved aside to allow her entry, and followed her in.

"This is my room." He said, and smiled. "If you need me in the middle of the night, well, this is where you'll find me."

Kanehara looked around. There wasn't much here, a bed, a desk, bookshelves, a large window with the curtains open, a closet, and a forest green rug. She was starting to notice a pattern with Urahara and forest green. _It's much nicer than my room right now._ She noted. She followed Urahara back out to the landing.

"These other three doors lead to Jinta's, Ururu's, and Tessai's rooms. I don't think they would appreciate it if I let you into their quarters without permission." He smiled wryly. Kanehara nodded, agreeing that it would be rude to snoop.

She stepped backwards to turn and make her way back down the stairs, but she had misjudged her distance. Kanehara lost her balance, gasped, and fell backwards. She immediately braced herself for the impact, and squeezed her eyes shut. She never hit the stairs. She opened her eyes and stared up right into Urahara's blue-gray ones, an inch from her own. He had caught her, and she realized that he had caught her at the very last second, his arms still wrapped tightly around her, holding her body close to his. She was so close to him; she could feel his heart pounding with the aftereffects of an adrenaline rush, she could smell the light, musky cologne that he was wearing.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice and eyes filled with concern.

Kanehara's heart raced and a moment later she sighed in relief. "Yeah, I'm okay. Uh, thanks, Urahara-san." She felt her cheeks grow warm.

Urahara closed his eyes and laughed in relief. "That's good, then. I don't think I'll be letting you near any more staircases when you're here." He grinned, and helped her back to her feet.

"I think that's a very smart idea." Kanehara agreed, and descended the last few stairs, and she noticed Urahara didn't let go of her hand until she was down.

"I think you've had enough walking for today, maybe you should go back and lie-" Urahara was cut off by a sudden shout.

"URURU!!! Come back here!" A small boy with red hair rushed past, chasing Ururu with a broom raised high above his head. "You need to go back and CLEEEEAN!!!"

Ururu's frightened squeaks were all the response the boy seemed to need. He laughed maniacally and continued to chase Ururu out of the house and outside.

"Ah, well, I see that Jinta has now made his appearance." Urahara chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.

Kanehara looked back over her shoulder at Urahara. "Shouldn't we help her?" she asked incredulously, her eyes wide. Urahara laughed.

"Oh, she'll be fine. They always play like that." He smiled, and gestured towards her room. "Now, as I was saying before I was interrupted, I think that's enough walking for you today. We wouldn't want you decapitating yourself from tripping over the ceiling!" he chuckled as Kanehara flushed embarrassedly, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

* * *

He led the way back to her room, and held the door open for her. She sat back down on her futon. Urahara knelt down beside her bed and removed his sandals. _I should give him a break, he's doing everything to make sure I'm comfortable and all I've been doing is giving him attitude. Sheesh, I'm such a jerk! _She mentally scolded herself, pulling the covers over her lap.

Her curiosity got the better of her and she asked the question that had been plaguing her mind for a while now. "What will you be teaching me?" she asked.

"I'll be teaching you to fight and defend yourself." He said, taking off his hat again. "And maybe," he began twirling his hat in his hands, "You will find that you have powers after all." The hat stopped twirling.

Kanehara met his gaze and didn't falter. "Urahara, why are you… Doing all this? I'm not really all that important, and nobody would notice me gone if I disappeared…" She drifted off, breaking eye contact.

"You are important." He said quietly, putting his hat back on, pulling it over his eyes. "To everyone you have met here, to some… Even more important." He put his hands on her cheeks, tilting her face up at his. "And everyone you have met here would notice you missing." For a moment neither spoke, and Urahara let go and sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm helping you because you're part of the group now, you've been entrusted with a secret, and now you can fight." He grinned crookedly, and stood up. "Now, Satsu-chan! Ishida-kun and Kurosaki-kun will be here for you soon! I'll go and fetch you some clothes to change into." He hummed as he slipped back into his sandals and skipped out of the room, sliding the door behind him.

She sat there, staring up at the ceiling, wondering about what she would be trained to do, what friends would she make or not make after this, and most of all, she couldn't stop wondering about Urahara and his mysterious cheerfulness.

A moment later, the door slid open again, and Urahara stepped back into the room carrying a small pile of neatly folded clothes. "You don't have to return these, I have plenty more." He said and crouched, handing the pile to Kanehara.

"Your clothes? But, Urahara-san, I couldn't, I-" Kanehara flustered, holding the pile back towards him.

"Satsu-chan, Satsu-chan, my clothes are the only ones that will fit you." He said casually, shrugging. "Jinta and Ururu are much too small, and Tessai is much, much too big, so unless you want to walk home without clothes, I suggest you wear these." He chuckled.

Kanehara paused for a moment. "Thanks, Urahara-san. I'll bring them back." She promised, looking up at him.

"They might be a bit baggy, but, they'll fit alright, I hope." He grinned, and walked back out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Kanehara blinked as she unfolded the articles of clothing. _Forest green_, she grinned from the irony. It was the same samue that Urahara was wearing. She slid out of the haori and quickly dressed into the trouser and kimono-style top, tying it around her waist, just as she heard her name being called.

"Satsu-chan! Ishida-kun and Kurosaki-kun are here!"

* * *

**Author's Note: I had fun with one paragraph in particular. Can you guess which one? After this chapter, the sexual tension between Kanehara and Urahara will be put on hold, because her training begins as of now. Don't think that anyone will forget about it, because you'd be wrong. (evil grin)  
**

**Read and review!**


	6. Thunderstruck Hallucinations

**Disclaimer: Pretty soon I'm not going to even bother. I don't own Bleach. I own Kanehara, but not Bleach. I'd be better off telling 'knock, knock jokes'!  
**

* * *

**Author's Note: Alright, to some of you, this may seem like a Mary Sue. I assure you, it is not. Kanehara is as much of a Mary Sue as Harry Potter is. Harry might even be MORE of a Mary Sue, but still. I enjoy feedback, but not nasty remarks. Arigato gozaimasu, thank you very much, G. :)**

* * *

Kanehara strode through the rice paper sliding door, rolling up the sleeves of the overly long jacket, and saw Kurosaki, Ishida, and Urahara standing near the front entrance. 

"What are you wearing?" Kurosaki asked incredulously, looking her up and down and folded his arms. "That looks like something Sandal Hat would wear."

"Actually, it is." Kanehara said with a slight unease. She shifted uncomfortably under Kurosaki's fixed stare.

Ishida adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "Kurosaki-san, we have to leave. We do have school tomorrow." He shot a meaningful look at Kurosaki from behind his long, raven bangs.

Kurosaki nodded and sighed, annoyed. "Are you coming or not?" he asked, shooting a glance at Kanehara.

"I expect you back here Friday evening, Satsu-chan. You'd better be well rested." Urahara smiled politely, whipped his fan out and hid his lower face behind it.

Kanehara nodded and walked over to where her shoes had been placed, behind Kurosaki, and slipped them on, tapping the toe of her right one to fully get her foot in. She heard Kurosaki sigh and looked up.

"It's raining." He said irritated, holding out a red umbrella to her. She took it and held it pointing down, noticing that both he and Ishida were holding umbrellas as well. "If you don't want to get wet, use that."

As they walked to the large, rice paper sliding doors, Kurosaki and Ishida thanked Urahara, slid the doors open, and opened their umbrellas. Kanehara imitated the boys and opened hers, resting it against her right shoulder. The sky had clouded over and was now a dark, stony gray. None of them spoke for a long while as they strolled down street after street; the only sound was of the raindrops bouncing off their makeshift shelters, and the occasional splash of one of the group stepping accidentally into a puddle.

She had always enjoyed the rain; the drops hitting the leaves of the trees high above sounded like millions of hands gently applauding, the lone drips of water falling from the occasional roof corner glistening in the murky light like tiny crystals. A car drove past, spraying water from the tires into its wheel wells.

They crossed another intersection with a break in traffic and jogged their way towards a section of clustered apartments that looked derelict in the filtered, gray lighting.

"This is it?" Ishida asked, his voice quiet and turned so he could look at Kanehara.

She nodded. "Thank you, Kurosaki-kun, Ishida-kun." Kanehara said, bowing quickly and moved her hand to close the umbrella. Kurosaki held up a hand to stop her.

"Keep that and give it back tomorrow, you'll need it to walk the rest of the way." He said, not looking at her.

Kanehara opened her mouth to respond, but before she could get anything out, the two had turned and had already started walking away. She stood there for a moment, watching them retreating, their reflections in the puddles along the sidewalk broken into colourful shimmers by the falling droplets, then turned and began treading the familiar route back to her apartment.

* * *

The rain had not stopped the next day. The same dreary gray sky hung over the school as the boot-clad students trudged into the place where they obviously did not want to be. Kanehara followed the sea of multi-coloured umbrellas into the entrance hall where everyone took their boots off and changed into their uniform shoes. 

The morning went by quickly, nothing new or exciting happened. The rainstorm had remained consistent, but through the partially open window, the occasional gusts of wind that blew in were a muggy heat, Kanehara guessed there must be a thunderstorm on its way.

Earlier, Yasutora had knocked a paper ball of out the air that someone had intended to hit her with. The small crumpled wad fell, bounced once with a soft plop, and came to rest in the middle of the isle, harmless. His simple act of kindness, even though neither said anything, made Kanehara smile to herself while she copied the notes down off the blackboard.

Lunch came, and Kanehara bent to pull her bento out of her school bag. When she sat up again, someone had their face very close to hers.

"Gaaah!" Kanehara started and jumped backwards, startled.

Kuchiki was sitting backwards in the seat in front of her desk watching her intently, her face half a foot from Kanehara's, and looked startled at her reaction, her black eyebrows raised.

Kanehara sat down, her eyes wide in exasperation. "Kuchiki-san, you scared me!" she said, letting the breath she was holding out.

"Obviously." Kuchiki rolled her eyes and shook her head, then smiled. "Can I have lunch with you?" she asked.

Kanehara blinked. "Sure, alright." She managed to say, moving her bento closer to her so that Kuchiki could put hers down across from her.

"Would you like an onigiri?" Kuchiki asked, holding out a seaweed-wrapped rice ball.

"Thanks," Kanehara smiled and reached for the rice ball. As she lifted it out of her hand, Kanehara noticed something written on Kuchiki's palm. Squinting, she read it: 'If you say anything about what happened, you won't have a mouth left to say it again.' After the note was a small bunny happy face.

Kanehara blanched and looked up at once, her eyes wide, to Kuchiki, who was smiling sweetly, seeming completely oblivious to Kanehara's suddenly ashen face.

"What the-" she started alarmed, and hastily lowered her voice to a harsh whisper. "What the hell does that mean?!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Kanehara-san!" Kuchiki chuckled pleasantly and raised her eyebrows as though this was obvious. "Don't you want the onigiri?" her face falling into a false heartbroken look. She sniffed to emphasize the sadness.

Kanehara stared at her in disbelief, her mouth open to retort, but she couldn't find anything to say. _This is unbelievable,_ she couldn't help but think incredulously.

Kuchiki leaned over the desk so that their faces were an inch apart. "Eat the damned onigiri or you'll draw attention to yourself." She muttered darkly, a menacing glint in her violet eyes. She sat back in her chair, and smiled in satisfaction as Kanehara hastily took a large bite of the onigiri.

"How did you sleep?" Kuchiki asked, taking a bite out of her own onigiri.

Kanehara swallowed. "Alright. The rain was a bit hard to sleep through, but I managed." She said simply and took another bite of the onigiri.

Kuchiki nodded. They ate in silence, the chatter and bustle of the classroom was cheerful despite the ominously darkening sky outside.

"Thank you for the onigiri, Kuchiki-san." Kanehara smiled, having finished her rice ball. She pulled out a juice pack from her bento and poked the straw into the foil-covered hole.

"Call me Rukia." She said and stuffed the rest of the onigiri into her mouth.

* * *

School ended just as the rain changed into the thunderstorm Kanehara knew it would become. Students were huddled under umbrellas, not stopping to chat, only rushing towards their next destinations while thunder boomed quietly in the distance. 

"Dammit!" Kanehara cursed openly, realizing she had returned the umbrella that Kurosaki had lent her. _That was real smart, Satsuki, good job. _She mentally grumbled. Hurriedly, Kanehara pulled her black rain jacket over her head, and began walking briskly to the bus stop at the end of the street, her bag's handle clenched tightly in her left hand.

She arrived at the bus stop and waited impatiently, the rain pounding down on her jacket, her boots were two inches deep in a large puddle by the stop. The heated air had created a misty fug, blurring Kanehara's vision; she could only see a few feet in front of herself. Twice, as cars had driven by, Kanehara had been sloshed with murky rainwater that had trickled into her boots, soaking her socks, and also drenching her uniform's skirt.

The city bus arrived a few minutes behind schedule and opened its doors, allowing Kanehara to step inside. The doors shut behind her with a swift click and she climbed up the stairs to insert her ticket she pulled out of her jacket pocket in the machine's slot. The ticket vanished for a moment, then after a dull beep, reappeared. Kanehara retrieved the stub and went to find an open seat.

She sat near one of the wheel wells of the bus, and turned her head so she could stare out of the rain-streamed window at the gray and dull-coloured world flashing by.

Kanehara reached up to pull the cord to signal the bus to pull over at the next stop, and picked up her bag that was on the seat beside her. She rose and walked quickly to the door, stepping over legs and handbags, thanked the driver and pulled her jacket back over her head as she descended.

The rain had eased its pounding slightly, and Kanehara quickened her pace when she heard another rumbling peal of thunder from the heavens. She nearly stepped in a puddle and leapt aside quickly. Kanehara looked up and almost walked into the same old man she had spoken to before. He stood in the rain, in his red button-up t-shirt and khakis. Coming to a sudden halt, Kanehara's cheeks turned pink.

"I'm so sorry, Ojisan! I didn't see you there." She apologized truthfully, and bowed quickly.

"It's alright, it's very hard to see tonight." He smiled kindly, his laugh lines crinkling, and stroked his short silvery beard with his right hand. "Run along before you catch cold, now." The old man prodded her shin gently with the end of his cane.

"Yes. Good bye, Ojisan." Kanehara bowed again and rushed past the old man, heading for the corner where the dilapidated segment of apartments stood, windows alight. Thunder rumbled overhead again, and a thought struck her; the old man had not been dressed properly for the rain! _Hang on... What the hell was he wearing in this weather?_! She asked herself quickly, recalling the red button-up he had been wearing.

She whirled around, her black jacket spraying little droplets of water to stare in the direction the old man had walked, she caught a glimpse of a red blur in the distance but was blinded by a sudden flash of lightning. A split second after it had struck, Kanehara opened her eyes. The old man had vanished. Kanehara looked around, worried that the man had fallen down somewhere, but couldn't see him. Thunder crashed above her again, and she assured herself that the old man was safe, that the red blur she had seen was a hallucination, and hurried off towards her apartment.

* * *

**Author's Note: That's it for now, hope you enjoyed it. It's the longest chapter so far, but the next one will be longer, I can assure you. I do enjoy the rain, you know. It can make everything familiar look entirely different.**

**Read and review!**


	7. Something Wrong?

**Disclaimer: Knock, knock! (Who's there?) Abbott! (Abbott who?) Abbott time you realized I don't own Bleach!**

**Badum dum chish!**

* * *

**  
Author's Note: Okay… Maybe the sexual tension ISN'T gone, but who would mind? (Evil grin) Please read and enjoy! Thank you for your reviews! It's what keeps me going.**

* * *

The week wore on, and eventually the clouds and the rain dispersed, leaving Friday morning bright and warm. Sunlight streamed through the partially open curtains, giving the bedroom golden glow.  
_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEEP BEE-_ The shrill alarm was suddenly silenced by Kanehara's palm, which struck out like a viper from under her cloud-patterned comforter. She sat up, stretched, yawned, and clambered out of bed, tying her blue hair into a lazy bun. She opened the door to her tiny bathroom and stared at herself in the mirror. The gash the Hollow had left had begun to scar, but thankfully was not open anymore. She had Inoue to thank for that. 

"Well," she said aloud to her bleary-eyed reflection, "At least I got a decent rest." She yawned groggily again and bent over the sink, twisted the broken plastic handle, and splashed her face. _Tonight…  
_

* * *

Rukia greeted Kanehara cheerfully outside the classroom door that morning. 

"Are you ready for tonight?" Rukia raised her eyebrow and grinned demonically, walking off towards her own seat.

"I suppose I would have to be! I don't know what he's going to do, so…" Kanehara shrugged and sat down too.

Class went on normally until ten thirty, when a horrible, blood-chilling howl broke the silence of the classroom. Kanehara's head snapped in the direction of the window. Her peripheral vision told her that she wasn't the only one who had noticed. Rukia, Ishida, Inoue, Yasutora, and Kurosaki had momentarily fixed their gazes upon the hulking behemoth that was drawing ever closer, the floor of the classroom shook slightly with every step the Hollow took. No one else had seemed to notice. The students and teacher went on as if no bloodthirsty soul eater was heading straight for their school.

Kanehara glanced over frantically to Inoue, who met her gaze out of the corner of her gray eye and shook her head ever so slightly. She pointed, keeping her hand low to her notebook, towards Kurosaki, whose hand has held high in the air. Kanehara noticed it shaking slightly, and knew the incredible amount of self-control he must have been using to refrain from yelling. The teacher looked over at him and adjusted her small glasses.

"Yes, Kurosaki-san?" she asked, eyeing him once over. "Is there something wrong?"

_YES! _Kanehara wanted to scream, but bit her lip. The Hollow screamed again, the hairs on Kanehara's arms and neck stood up.

"Sensei, please may I go to the washroom?" Kurosaki asked urgently, his voice sounded strained.

The teacher closed her book and frowned at Kurosaki. "Can't it wait until the end of the lesson?" she asked, putting a hand on her hip.

"No! Gomenasai, sensei, but I reeeeeally have to go!" Kurosaki began to fidget now, his patience wearing thin. The Hollow was barely fifty feet away when it roared again, it's terrible white mask glinting in the sunlight. Kurosaki must've noticed it too, because his voice was urgent now. "Please!"

The teacher sighed and waved a hand, turning back to the black board. "Fine, Kurosaki-san! You may go." She said, opening her book again.

Kurosaki shot like a bullet out of the classroom, closing the sliding door quickly behind him. The Hollow was twenty feet away now; it's many arms hanging by its side. Kanehara could see the venom dripping from it's yellowed talons. A flash of orange and black streaked past the window, making a beeline for the horrible creature, which laughed maniacally, its voice distorted and cruel. Kanehara watched from the corner of her eye, as Kurosaki pulled his zanpakto from it's white wraps and struck the Hollow straight on. The mask cracked and splintered, the monster disappearing into dark particles that faded to into the sunlight.

Five barely audible sighs of relief were let out simultaneously. The flash of black and orange zoomed back up past the window.

* * *

Kanehara had began to doodle in the margins of her notes. Little stick figures with striped beach hats, strawberries vanquishing Hollows, and happy faces. The ringing of the bell made Kanehara jump, and quickly slide her notebook and pens back into her bag, then swung it over her shoulder. She had just turned around when she came face-to-face with Rukia.

"Go home and pack, at eight-o'clock sharp Chad will be waiting for you on the corner by your house." She said, and then smiled. "Ganbatte ne, Satsuki-san, good luck." She waved and walked out of the classroom her gray skirt bouncing behind her as she went.

Ishida and Kurosaki were the last ones in the classroom, and followed her out.

"We haven't been formally introduced," Ishida said from her left as they walked, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Ishida Uryuu." He said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Hajimemashite, Ishida-kun." Kanehara bowed slightly and smiled.

"You know who I am," Kurosaki started from her right, holding his bag over his shoulder. "Kurosaki Ichigo, nice to meet you." He shouldered his way past a gaggle of girls as they walked down the hallway.

Kanehara repeated the greeting.

They climbed down a flight of stairs, Kanehara still flanked by Ichigo and Ishida. Then parted at the school gates. Both men wished her good luck, and she walked off towards the bus stop at the end of the street.

* * *

The sun was setting, causing everything in Kanehara's bedroom to shine golden. A small duffel bag was perched on her bed, half filled with clothing and toiletries. She had thrown in a few bandages and gauzes for good measure. Kanehara didn't think she would have the time or energy to read a book, so she didn't pack the novel on her bedside table. Tying her hair into a quick ponytail, her hair looked green in the light from the setting sun. She zipped up the duffel and swung it over her shoulder. She pulled her house keys out of her gray sweatshirt's pocket and locked the door behind her. Pulling back her sleeve she checked the time on her watch. Seven fifty-eight, two minutes.

She strode quickly to the end of the sidewalk and saw Chad standing on the corner in a black leather jacket and jeans.

"Good evening, Kanehara-san. I'll carry that." He said in his deep voice, and took the duffel from Kanehara. She didn't have time to protest. "Follow me please." He then turned and began walking away.

Kanehara rushed to keep up with his long strides.

* * *

They had been walking for a while when the sun's dying light had finally disappeared from the clouds above, and the twilight's chill had set in. Kanehara tucked her hands under her arms tightly and quickened her pace to Chad's lengthy stroll. 

"Urahara-san wants you there by nine, so we need to hurry, it's already eight forty-five."

Kanehara was suddenly lifted into the air. She made a sound of surprise and looked around. Chad had lifted her onto his back and held her legs securely so she wouldn't fall. Then he began to jog, and Kanehara held tight around Chad's thick neck so she would fall backwards. The dark scenery flashed by them, seeming to pass by faster in the darkness. The stars above partially covered by the black night clouds, moonlight falling between the voids, casting weird shadows along the sidewalk. Chad turned another corner and ran beside a long, wooden fence. Kanehara recognized the fence, and knew what lay just a few feet ahead. Chad slowed to a walk, and lowered Kanehara to the ground gently.

"I apologize, but I did not want you to be late." Chad said, inclining his head.

Kanehara laughed. "It's okay, Chad! I rather enjoyed that!" She smiled up at the figure at least three feet taller than her, and took her duffel from his hand.

The two walked towards the Urahara Shoten's entrance, and Chad slid the door open.

"Urahara-san?" Chad called out while Kanehara looked around. The entrance hall was lit, but she couldn't see any sign of Urahara.

"Chad!" came a cheery voice, and around the corner strolled Urahara with his little white fan out. "And Satsu-chan! Right on time, thank you Chad." He smiled and walked over, his wooden sandals making soft clacking noises against the wooden floor.

Kanehara smiled and looked up when Chad spoke.

"I'll leave you then, Kanehara-san." He inclined his head again. "I shall see you on Monday." He ducked his head at the doorway, and then slid the doors shut. Kanehara slipped off her sneakers and placed them neatly by the doors.

Kanehara looked over at Urahara who had approached her.

"Ururu and Jinta are asleep, so we shouldn't be too loud." He said, folding his fan closed and slipping it inside his coat's pocket. "We've prepared a room for you, so you won't be too uncomfortable while you are staying here." He smiled and looked down at her with shadowed eyes.

"Urahara-san, you really didn't have to-" Kanehara started, but was cut off by Urahara laughing quietly.

"Nonsense, Satsu-chan! It was our pleasure." Urahara insisted, and lead her away, taking her duffel into his left hand, and put his right on her shoulder, leading her into the house. "The room you slept in before has returned to it's original status of a storage room, so we've set up your new bed in my room." He said, letting her climb up the stairs before him, and she stopped as he said the last words, looking at him with wide eyes.  
"Don't be offended, but Jinta was… disagreeable to sharing a room with you, and Ururu wouldn't say anything. Tessai fills up his room with most of his self, so he suggested that you sleep in my room." He looked up at her with a small smile. "Is something wrong?" he asked, his head tilting slightly.

Kanehara blushed furiously and shook her head. "No Urahara-san. Uh… Thank you." She turned and hurried up the stairs. _This is awkward... _She thought._ Share a room with Urahara?! What the hell was Tessai thinking?! I could never do that… But I am… I shouldn't be!! But there was nowhere else to sleep, so… It's not like we're sharing a bed!! _ The internal argument raged inside Kanehara's mind.

Urahara shook his head and laughed to himself, then climbed to the top of the stairs where Kanehara stood, waiting for him outside his bedroom. He opened the door and stood aside for Kanehara to pass him.

"I'll wait outside for you to change and get set up. Call me when you're finished, Satsu-chan!" He smiled crookedly and closed the door behind her.

The room now had two beds, Urahara's was still in the same spot, and she assumed the new one in the far corner was hers. She walked across the forest green carpet and set her duffel down on the futon. _I can't believe I'm actually doing this! I know this is going to be embarrassing, but I'm still doing it!! Why?! Why am I doing this? _The two voices in her head bickering as she unzipped the duffel bag and rummaged for a second before finding her pajamas. She slipped quickly out of her clothes and into her pajamas, which consisted of a faded blue fitted t-shirt and baggy sky-and-clouds bottoms.

"Urahara-san, I'm done." She called towards the closed door. Which immediately opened, as though he had been waiting for her to say so. Kanehara blinked, and noticed he had already changed into his pajamas. Her breath hitched as she looked over at him. Urahara smiled, and walked over to his closet to hang his clothes. He had, somehow, changed into a pair of emerald green pajama pants. He was also not wearing a shirt. Kanehara blushed profusely and busied herself with repacking her duffel bag.

"You can put your clothes into the dresser beside your bed."

Kanehara whirled around, blushing deep red, to face Urahara, who looked like he was trying to contain a smile. Again, she had to fight to maintain eye contact.

"The- the dresser?" she stammered and followed his pointing finger, and turned around to see a small chest of drawers standing beside her bed. She turned back quickly and smiled, her blushing never ceasing. "Oh! Uh, thanks, Urahara-san!" She thank him, then quickly unzipped her duffel once again, and opened the first drawer, putting all the folded clothing into there. _I'll sort through it later._ She made a mental note. After all the clothes and accessories were in, she closed the first drawer, opened the second, and put her now empty duffel bag into it, and closed the drawer again.

"Is there something wrong, Satsu-chan?" she heard Urahara's voice behind her, chuckling.

"No, Urahara-san, there's nothing wrong!" she assured him quickly without looking at him, pulled her hair elastic out, and shook out her long, blue hair, then quickly clambered into her bed, practically diving under the covers. "Good night, Urahara-san!" she called from beneath the comforter. She heard Urahara laugh from behind her, obviously finding her embarrassment terribly amusing.

"Good night, Satsu-chan." She heard him say, she could hear the smile, then his soft retreating footsteps. The lights dimmed, and she heard the rustle of covers that told her Urahara had also climbed into his bed.

Her eyes were wide under the forest green covers, her cheeks still burned. Then, smiling slightly, she allowed her eyes to close, and her mind to wander. _Oh my god, his abs! _

Okay, maybe she'd have to train her mind not to wander _that_ far.

* * *

**  
Author's Note: I had a lot of fun with this chapter, and I debated for a bit whether to send her to her old room, or to Urahara's. I figured you'd all like the Urahara room idea, so I went on with it. (Shrug) What can I say? I had fun. (Evil Grin)**

**Read and review!**


	8. Wake up, Benihime

**Disclaimer: Knock knock! (Who's there?) Shirley! (Shirley who?) Shirley you should know the disclaimer by now!(Badum dum chish!)**

* * *

Kanehara squirmed and made disgruntled noise, pulling the covers higher over her eyes to shield herself from the bright sunshine. Through the covers and her eyelids she saw a shadow block the light. She opened her eyes and pulled the covers down, yawning and rubbing her eyes. She looked up and saw Urahara standing over her with a wide smile plastered on his face. 

"Good morning, Satsu-chan!" he beamed.

Kanehara just about had a heart attack; she just realized that she was not in her own bedroom. Taking a deep breath, she sat up and stared exasperatedly up at him.

"Good morning!" She smiled, continuing to take deep breaths to try and calm her racing heart. Today, Urahara was fully dressed, and Kanehara breathed a mental sigh of relief.

Urahara laughed jovially. "Did I scare you?" he asked, grinning.

"Just a little." Kanehara admitted, sliding her legs over the side of the bed.

The blond manager laughed again, cupping her chin with his left hand and putting his right on his hip. "Tessai is making breakfast. I hope you like pancakes!" He grinned again as Kanehara's face lit up.

"I love pancakes!" she said brightly.

"Good! It's eight o'clock, we start training at nine." Urahara let go of her chin and pranced over to the door, his sandals clicking every time they hit the floor. "Come on down when you're dressed!" he shut the door behind him. Kanehara could still hear the sharp clicks of the wooden sandals until they faded away entirely. Kanehara yawned and stretched. _I'll get used to seeing him without a shirt, _she assured herself. _Hopefully._ Kanehara got out of bed, and pulled open the first drawer, finding her loose green tank top and a pair of jean capris. _I don't know how much I'll have to move, so best be on the safe side._

Kanehara bounced into the living room five minutes later with her hair pulled back into a long, blue ponytail. Four pairs of eyes looked up at her as she walked over and knelt down at the table beside Ururu. Tessai and Ururu greeted her; Ururu's softer and harder to hear. Jinta, she assumed, was shoveling his breakfast down like there was no tomorrow. Urahara who was on her left passed her the plate of pancakes, and took two, dragging them carefully onto her own plate. She didn't speak at all during breakfast, but listened to the other conversations that happened around the table.

* * *

Nine o'clock rolled around and Urahara lead the way towards a closed trap door. He bent and pulled it open. Tessai climbed down first, then Ururu, then Jinta. Urahara offered to let Kanehara go next, and she began to climb down the ladder's rungs, clinging slightly for dear life. She hadn't told anyone she was afraid of heights. Once, she looked up at Urahara and glimpsed a view of his rear accidentally, and quickly looked back down, her cheeks burning. 

They reached the bottom and stood in a group in a vastly huge area. Kanehara stared around in utter amazement, her jaw dropped as she took in the realistically painted sky and the intricate detail in the ground itself.

"This is amazing!" she said, voicing her thoughts aloud, grinning.

Tessai grabbed her hands, tears streaming from his eyes.

"Thank you!" he said beaming, wiping his eyes with a small white handkerchief. "We worked so hard to create this!"

Kanehara sweatdropped, and laughed. "You're welcome."

Urahara clapped his hands together. Everyone fell silent.

"Satsu-chan," he began, turning to face her. "For you to actually bring out your powers, you need to be in danger." The corners of his mouth twitched slightly. "I-" He hesitated for a split second, then continued as though there had been no interruption. "Ururu will be fighting you today."

Kanehara frowned and looked down at Ururu, whose timid demeanor quite clearly said that she had no will to fight. "Urahara-san, are you sure-?" Ururu bowed her head.

"I promise not to go too hard on you, Satsuki-san." She said quietly, as though she were in a library.

Kanehara blinked and shook her head. "But, I can't fight Ururu! She's too gentle! I couldn't hurt her." Kanehara said, looking imploringly up at Urahara.

Urahara grinned. "Don't underestimate Ururu, Satsu-chan." As he spoke, Ururu pulled from behind her a large, bandaged object.

"Ganbatte, Satsuki-san. Please do your best." Ururu spoke again, hoisting the object onto her shoulder.

* * *

Ururu and Kanehara faced each other in the center of a large, flat dusty plain. _How can I hurt Ururu? This is preposterous! She's so-_ Kanehara's thoughts were interrupted by Urahara's distant shout.

"Begin!"

Kanehara barely had time to glance back around to Ururu before a white-hot light grazed by her face. She swore and stumbled backwards. And stared in horror at Ururu, whose sad face watched her, and fired another ball of fire at her. Kanehara dodged the next one, and bolted to the right, and another ball was launched straight for her.

"Kuso! How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!" she yelled to no one in particular.

Minutes dragged on into hours, and Kanehara still had not shown any inkling of powers. She fell defeated to her knees, sweating and panting. She was bruised and dirty from the many times she had thrown herself to the ground, she had cut her upper arm on one of the rocks, and it had begun to scab.

"Please," she panted, her heart racing, her hands clutching the ground for support. "Please… Can we… Take a break?"

She looked up at Ururu, who had walked over to where she knelt. Her eyes were as sad and shy as ever. Urahara appeared from over Ururu's shoulder, staring down at her with his warm, gray eyes.

"We'll take a break for lunch." He said, then turned on his heel and walked back towards the ladder.

They climbed the ladder, Kanehara half-carried by Tessai, who also helped her through the trap door. Kanehara stood gingerly, and looked up to see Urahara's forest green haori disappear around the corner. _Did I do something wrong…? _Tessai put his hand on her shoulder and walked her towards the large, square table.

* * *

They stood once again at the base of the ladder in the vast open space underneath the Urahara Store, Jinta had stayed behind to watch the storefront. Kanehara looked from once face to another, then Urahara spoke. 

"I'll be fighting you now, instead of Ururu." He said, twirling his cane in his left hand. "Let's begin." Urahara walked by Kanehara, leading the way. Kanehara followed, still confused in the wake of his sudden change of personality. They were now in the center of the plain again when Urahara stopped about ten feet away, and turned to face her. Kanehara braced herself; bending her knees slightly, ready to move. He slid the bottom half of his cane off, revealing a long, slender blade. Kanehara's eyes widened and her heart began to pound. _A sword?! _ "Wake up, Benihime." The blade glowed for a moment, then the light faded, leaving a more terrifying sword in its place. Kanehara's adrenaline began to pump through her veins like poison as she realized what it was. _A zanpakto._

"Begin!"

Urahara lunged at her with the blade, and she only just dodged, skidding to the side. She barely had time to recover when the sword whistled past her right ear. _He's trying to kill me!_ Kanehara realized with a flash of terror as Urahara skidded to a halt, before dashing back towards her. She dodged the next stab and took off in the opposite direction, trying to get some distance between the two of them. Urahara caught up to her and slashed again, grazing her cheek. Kanehara saw droplets of crimson on the edge of his blade, and slid sideways, staring at Urahara's face. It was as though he was a completely different person; his eyes were no longer warm, but a cold, stony gray. She barely had time to react when the stranger leapt at her once again, bringing the sword around, aiming for her side.

Kanehara couldn't think, she couldn't move fast enough. Her cheek stung and she felt warm blood oozing slowly from the clotting wound. Urahara lunged at her again, the zanpakto pointed straight for her throat. There was nowhere for her to run, she was cornered against the sandstone wall. _This is the end._ She thought, her knees buckling beneath her, and closed her eyes. A sudden flash of light made Kanehara open her eyes. The sword, Benihime, had stopped at the last second. Urahara's eyes glinted dangerously, but his expression was frozen.

_Call us._

Kanehara blinked, that hadn't been her thoughts. _What?_

_Call us and we'll protect you. We'll tell you the words._

"Hoshi koogeki suru!" Kanehara commanded, her voice stronger than it had been a moment ago. The light in the underground area had dimmed, as though night had fallen across the painted day sky. Balls of light sparkled in the distance.

Urahara took a step backwards, his eyes never leaving her, Benihime falling a few inches.

"Gemini! Bind and restrict!" Kanehara shouted, pointing to Urahara. Two of the lights bolted forward, trailing a string of light between them and zoomed towards Urahara, quickly encircling him and binding his arms to his sides. He winced noticeably, and dropped his zanpakto, which fell to the ground with a soft plunk on the sand. _No time to think, I have to react._

"Sagittarius! Strike!" Another ball of light flew from the sky to Kanehara's outstretched hand and formed a bow. She pulled the string of light taut, and let it loose; a streamline bolt of light struck Urahara in the chest. Urahara's form crumpled and fell, his hat falling lamely to the side. The light faded and the sky returned to normal. She stared at the limp figure in horror, and fell against the rock wall behind her. _What did I do…? Urahara…_ A sudden wave of exhaustion and pain hit Kanehara, her knees gave out from beneath her, and fainted.

* * *

Kanehara groaned and stretched, pulling the covers over her head to block out the light. _Hang on… Covers?_ Kanehara opened her eyes and pulled the covers back down, then tried to sit up. She cringed as the pain of many bruises stopped her. Kanehara sighed in defeat and looked around from her lying position. She recognized Urahara's room, and pulled the covers over her head.

"What did I do?" she moaned, pulling her arms in tightly. _I hurt him. I hate hurting people, and I hurt him!_

_He tried to kill you, remember? _Prodded another voice in her head.

_But still! How much damage did I do? I didn't think I would… Kuso!_ She moaned again out loud and rolled onto her side, facing the wall. She reached up timidly and touched the scab on her cheek where Benihime had cut her.

"Kanehara-san?"

Kanehara rolled back over with difficulty, and cringed, then looked up into Tessai's face.

"Tessai!" She sat up quickly, ignoring the fiery pain urging her to lie back down. "How's Urahara-san? Did I-" Her voice, though quiet, had a definite note of panic that even Tessai couldn't miss.

"Urahara is fine," he cut her off gently, putting a massive hand on her shoulder. "You just knocked him out." Tessai smiled, "It'd take a lot more than that to bring Urahara down."

Kanehara sighed in relief, slumping back down onto her pillow, and closed her eyes. She heard Tessai chuckle and opened her eyes again.

"You were very worried, weren't you?" he asked, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, and smiled.

"Yes." Kanehara looked down at the forest green blankets, her cheeks turning the slightest shade of pink. "Well, he just… Fell. I thought I'd…"

"You couldn't have killed me."

Kanehara and Tessai, surprised, looked over to the only other bed, and saw Urahara, sitting up, slouched over with his hands in his lap.

The blonde grinned, twirling his hat in his hands. "You didn't mean it. You couldn't have killed me." He repeated. "You have to mean it if you want to kill." The hat stopped twirling.

Kanehara's blush deepened with embarrassment, and she looked away. Urahara chuckled and slid out of bed. Kanehara looked up and watched him approach her bed, and stopped beside Tessai. Tessai and Urahara exchanged glances, Tessai nodded and stood.

"Dinner will be finished soon, Kanehara-san." He said before striding to the door, and ducking slightly to exit, shutting the door behind him. Urahara slid into Tessai's now vacant seat, and leaned forward, resting his head in his left hand.

"I broke my promise." He said, frowning.

Kanehara blinked. "What promise?" she asked, her brow furrowed slightly in confusion.

"I promised I wouldn't hurt you." Urahara said, reaching over with his right hand to touch the scabbed wound on her cheek that his sword had left, his frown deepened.

Kanehara felt goose bumps form all the way down her neck from where Urahara had touched. She tugged the blankets closer, hoping he didn't notice, and shook her head. "It's alright, I didn't move fast enough-"

Urahara cut her off by pressing his finger against her lips. Kanehara could hear her heart pounding in her chest. For a moment, Urahara's face was unreadable, and Kanehara saw what she thought to be frustration cross his face. But, the look was fleeting, and was gone as quick as it had come. "So, Satsu-chan," he said, and Kanehara could tell he was trying to steer the conversation in a different direction. "Constellations?" Urahara grinned, and withdrew his finger, resting his hand in his lap.

Kanehara stared at him for a moment, recalling the unforgettable sequence of events that had occurred not even an hour ago. "I didn't know what happened… I didn't…" She drifted, having nothing to say. Urahara ran his left hand through his white blonde hair and laughed quietly.

"Do you have any connection with them?" he asked, smiling crookedly. "Did you use to look for them at night?"

Kanehara nodded, and clasped her hands together, fixing her emerald green gaze upon them. "My okaasan used to search for them with me, when I was a kid. We'd always find Polaris, and the little dipper." Kanehara chuckled quietly, "But I could never find the big dipper. She'd joke that it was hiding." She said, smiling nostalgically.

"You and your mother were close, weren't you?" Urahara said quietly, leaning back, surveying Kanehara with his warm, blue-gray eyes.

"Yeah, we were. My otoosan worked all the time, so my mother quit her job to stay home with me." Kanehara explained. "My mother was a doctor, and a very good one. She worked at a major hospital in Kyoto; sometimes she'd have to stay for days on-call. After I was born, she left her job, and my father continued to teach university English. As I grew up, my mother remained at home, my father coming home at night with mountains of papers and tests to mark, but they always seemed to make time for the other and myself.

"One warm summers day, just after I had turned nine, my mother and I were in the backyard, hanging the laundry to dry. My cat, Tabitha, had chased after a butterfly and had jumped over the fence. There was a busy street nearby, and I didn't want her to get hit, so I told my mother I'd be right back, and went to chase after my cat. I returned with Tabitha, not even five minutes later, and couldn't find her. I called and called her name, but she didn't reply. I found her bleeding, pale, and motionless underneath a fallen tree limb. The doctors said the branch had fallen from the cedar in our backyard and crushed my mother underneath it. I never could believe them. She just seemed to invincible to me to have been killed by a stray tree limb.

"My father was devastated from her death. A month afterwards, I found him lying on the back lawn at night, next to the spot where she had died, and asked him what he was doing. He told me that she was out there, somewhere in those stars. He said that he knew she was still out there. The next day, he was dead. The coroners had said that he overdosed on a mixture of pills from his medicine cabinet. I was sent to live with my obaasan, who was very kind and took me in at once. We couldn't keep Tabitha, because my grandmother was allergic. I don't know what happened to my cat. She passed away in her sleep when I was fourteen, and after her funeral, I started to live on my own with her and my parent's inheritance money."

Kanehara finished, and neither of them spoke for a long while. "I'm sorry," Kanehara apologized, looking up at Urahara. "I got carried away… I hadn't told anyone that before…" She drifted, and bit her lip. Urahara seemed at a loss for words, and then in one fluid motion, he slid onto the bed beside her and pulled her into a tight embrace. Kanehara's first reaction was shock, but she didn't pull away. She closed her eyes and felt the warmth from his body against hers.

"I'm so sorry." He whispered, his arms still firmly around her. Kanehara could feel her heart rate speed up. A loud pounding made them both jump. Urahara let her go immediately, and a split second later, the door flew open. Jinta, the small fiery redheaded boy, stood in the doorway with his arms crossed. Kanehara blinked and flushed pink.

"Dinner's ready." He said, scowling, as though being sent to tell them this was a horrible punishment.

* * *

**Author's Note: Okay, I've written to the extent of this chapter. Three thousand words later, and I've run out. Chapter nine is on the way!**

**Read and Review!**


	9. Monday Blues

**Disclaimer: Knock knock! (Who's there?) Vera! (Vera who?) Vera few people think these knock knock jokes are funny.**

**(Badum bum chish!)  
**

* * *

The rest of the weekend flew by and by Monday, it was like a dream. Urahara had sent Kanehara on her way the night before with Chad. He sighed, and let the drapes go. They swung gently back into place, darkening the bedroom. He glanced over at the now made bed in the corner, and frowned slightly, then turned and walked out of the room. Urahara's sandals clacked against the wooden staircase as he descended, his cane gently hitting each stair that he passed. He strolled into the kitchen, stretching and yawning, and then scratched the back of his head.

"Tessai, I'm going to watch the store-" Urahara stopped, staring at the large, looming figure standing by the sink. "Tessai?"

Tessai's glasses glinted and his eyes sparkled with knowingness. "You didn't tell me you had nursed a soft spot for Kanehara-san." He grinned, his arms folded across his massive chest.

Urahara frowned and puffed up indignantly. "I have not! I just feel a certain protective instinct," he sniffed, and twirled his cane once. "Poor girl has been through so much…"

Tessai barked with laughter, the sound filling the small kitchen easily. "Protective instinct? Is that what you're calling it now?" He chuckled humorously.

"Don't go suggesting something that isn't there!" Urahara said sharply, pulling his hat lower over his eyes, and leaning on his cane. "She's merely a child, Tessai, I told you-"

"And I've told you, haven't I?" The behemoth chuckled again. "You don't have to be defensive about it, Kisuke. Now, go watch the storefront." He grinned beneath his thick mustache. 

* * *

Urahara grumbled to himself as he restocked some otherworldly goods on the shelves. "I didn't nurse a _soft spot_ for her… How could Tessai suggest that? I merely…" he paused for a second. "Would it be so bad?" he whispered to himself. He slapped his cheek and shook his head roughly. "No! I have not developed a soft spot for her!" he snarled, slamming the empty box down on the counter.

"Oh, okay then… I'll just go now." said a trembling voice quickly from behind him.

Urahara turned around just as a customer scurried out through the sliding rice paper doors in a great hurry. He gave a great sigh of frustration and rubbed the back of his head. "This is not the start to a good day, ne?" he spoke to no one in particular, shaking his head, and picked up the empty cardboard box again, and carried it with him back around the counter.

The day wore on, with nothing particularly exciting happening. Urahara had slumped into his usual stupor, reclining in a chair with his feet up on the counter. He heard someone come in and he straightened up quickly, pushing his beach hat up so he could see whom it was. He raised his eyebrows in surprise and stood up.

"Sleeping on the job again, Kisuke?" the visitor chuckled, and smiled.

"Isshin! I didn't expect you, how are you?" he grinned, and walked around the counter to greet his old comrade.

"I've been better." Isshin said, scratching his short brown beard. "I've come to talk to you," he lowered his voice to a barely audible murmur, "In private, hopefully."

Urahara nodded, his expression serious. He turned and cupped a hand to his mouth. "Jinta! Come and watch the storefront!" he shouted, and heard a loud smash as a reply.

Urahara lead the way to a room off to the side, and shut the door behind them. Both men bent and sat at opposite ends of the low, round table.

Isshin bent towards Urahara, lacing his fingers and leaning forward on his elbows. "Aizen's army is gathering strength quickly. Ichigo has been away from home nearly every night since the Vaizards contacted him, and sometimes has not returned for hours at a time. I don't fear for him, but I do fear for the casualties. Many innocent people have died, Kisuke. The Shinigami taichos are not enough to stop the Menos Grande and the Arrancar from coming into this world." He paused, his eyes surveying Urahara's stony features. "We need more help."

Urahara met Isshin's gaze with his luminescent blue-gray eyes. "I will do everything I can, but as you very well know, I'm forbidden to even set foot inside Soul Society. I can't be of much more help in that department."

Isshin's chocolate eyes glinted darkly. "Yamamoto-taicho is sending as many Shinigami as he dares allow, as I've heard from Kon."

Urahara nodded once, pulling his hat down. "I won't allow Jinta and Ururu to fight, but I will ask Tessai, and I daresay he won't refuse. Yoruichi would fight also, and there's no way I could stop her." Urahara murmured, stroking his gruff, unshaven chin, deep in thought.

The former Shinigami captains sat in silence for a moment. Then Isshin spoke again. "Ichigo and his friends will fight, that I know." He chuckled humorlessly, "I couldn't prevent them if I tried."

Urahara's hand twitched, and he clenched his hand tightly. "I'm not sure if some of them are up for the task…" He drifted, keeping his voice steady.

"Nonsense, you've seen them fight! They're more than capable." Isshin said, and then sighed in frustration. "This is going to be a full-out war, Kisuke. I hoped I wouldn't see this happen again… Those people, not knowing… Not seeing… Then dying… They won't know what hit them." He clenched his jaw and ran his right hand through his short brown hair distractedly.

Urahara was dead silent. He knew full well what was coming. "We have to try, Isshin." The blond manager said quietly, and then added, "I won't go down without a fight."

* * *

Urahara accompanied Isshin to the front entrance, where both men stood under the starry sky. Isshin spoke, breaking the nightly silence and the cicada song.

"How long do you think before Aizen attacks?" he asked, staring up at the pinpricks of light twinkling in the distance.

Urahara pulled his hat down and stared at the ground. "I didn't think the Hougyoku would be at full power by now." He sighed and closed his eyes. "Maybe three months at the least. We might have more time, we might not."

Isshin looked over at his former comrade, and then frowned slightly. "You're hurt, Kisuke?" he asked, noticing the bandages half-hidden underneath Urahara's forest green samue.

Urahara looked up quickly to Isshin, who still wore a look of mild confusion, and gave him a small smile. "Training." He said simply and shrugged, cocking a blonde eyebrow, still wearing the smile. Isshin crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows, shooting him a look that obviously questioned his answer. But Urahara just smiled, and didn't elaborate.

* * *

Morning came, accompanied by the musical chirring of the songbirds, almost invisible in the trees. Urahara rolled over in his bed and sighed sleepily. He opened his eyes groggily to the noisy _chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee_ coming from outside his window.

_Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!_

Urahara pulled the pillow over his head and groaned, mumbling curse words under his breath.

_Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!  
Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!_

He could hear someone thundering down the stairs.

_Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!_

For a moment all was silent, and Urahara could hear nothing, then…

_Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-WHACK!_

A loud wham was heard, followed shortly by a soft _thump _on the roof.

"I GOT IT!" a certain red-haired child yelled in triumph.

Urahara couldn't help but laugh. He sat up, still chortling, and straightened the bandages around his chest. The manager yawned and stretched and rubbed his eyes. As he sat, still waking himself up, a medium-sized black cat jumped onto the futon and padded softly towards him. He blinked and stared back into the yellow-eyed gaze of the feline.

"Yoruichi!" He said happily, scooping the cat into his arms and hugging it. He set Yoruichi back onto the bed gently and smiled at it. "What brings you here?" The cat shot him an 'are-you-really-that-stupid' look and sat down, rubbing its front paw over its face. Urahara grinned. "I meant, what brings you here into my room, while I'm still half-naked?"

"Don't flatter yourself." The cat said in a gruff voice, ceasing the cleaning. "I've come to talk to you about the Aizen problem at hand." Yoruichi pulled its ears back as Urahara opened his mouth, and hissed. "Don't you _dare_ say 'at paw', Kisuke." The cat growled menacingly and narrowed its yellow eyes. Urahara shut his mouth hastily. "Now, relay me the conversation of last night between Kurosaki Isshin and yourself." Yoruichi said quietly in a deep voice, and patiently waited as Urahara began to speak.

When Urahara had finished, Yoruichi licked her paw and started washing her face again. "And the injuries happened how?"

Urahara stared at the forest green wall, his eyes shadowed by the filtered light from the curtains. "You know perfectly well how they happened, Yoruichi." He said, flicking his eyes towards the cat. "Satsuk-"

"I just wanted to hear it from your own mouth, Kisuke. That's all." Yoruichi cut him off quietly. "She'll be returning in a few days?" She asked again.

Urahara nodded. "She'll be returning Friday evening."

"I think I'd like to meet her." Yoruichi grinned, flashing her sharp, dagger white teeth.

* * *

**Author's Note: I know chapter nine is short, but chapter ten will be better. Bear with me!**

**Read and review!**


	10. Three Days

**Disclaimer: Knock, knock jokes got boring.**

* * *

The sun had set and the clouds were beginning to roll in, covering the navy sky in a blanket of dark gray. Kanehara sat on her floor doing her homework on the table in her kitchen. The scratching of her pencil against the paper was only dulled by the sound of UVERworld playing on the small radio on the counter by the fridge. She stretched and yawned, then got back to work. Not even fifteen minutes later, there was a knock on her door. Kanehara started and looked up at it, wondering whom it could be at this hour. She stood and walked over to it, straightening her ponytail, and opened the door. On the landing stood a short, portly man with oil-slicked black hair and large, square spectacles.

"Mr. Takenawa!" She said in surprise, opening the door a little wider. "Is there a problem?" Kanehara asked, raising her blue eyebrows.

Takenawa cleared his throat and fiddled with a brown envelope in his hands. "Satsuki," he began, "You're a very sweet girl, and I don't want to do this… But…" He took a deep breath, straightened his glasses, and handed her the envelope. "I'm evicting you. I've been kind enough to extend the deadline days, and even weeks, but you haven't paid the rent."

Kanehara paled, the envelope trembled in her hands. "But… Mr. Takenawa…"

"I'm sorry, Satsuki. You have three days to remove your belongings. I hope you can find another tenant." The small man turned and walked back down the stairs, and in a moment had disappeared around the corner.

Kanehara stood in the doorway, the night wind tossing her cerulean hair gently about her face. She was in utter disbelief and shock. _I thought I'd paid this month's rent… I could've sworn… I… _She dropped to her knees and bit her lip, trying to force back the tears that threatened to run down her cheeks. Her shoulders shook with silent sobs, and tears dripped down her chin, lightly spattering her jeans and the eviction letter's envelope, leaving dark blotches as the water absorbed.

"I'd better get packing," she murmured to herself, vigorously wiping away the tears from her eyes. "I…" she swallowed and stopped, standing up and shutting the door.

* * *

Tuesday morning came, and Kanehara awoke to her alarm going off. The shrill beeping ceased as Kanehara whacked it. She shook her head and looked around. She had fallen asleep in her clothes from yesterday; her hair knotted itself around her hair tie while she had slept. The envelope rested on her bed next to her, she picked it up, and stared at it for a moment, then tossed it into her garbage can next to her closet.

The bus ride to school was long, and today even more monotonous. Kanehara couldn't shake the feeling of doom that gripped her heart like an icy hand. She couldn't bring herself to talk to her friends that day, either. Rukia, Orihime, Chad, Ishida, and even Ichigo had asked her what was wrong. Every time, she had just shaken her head in reply, and they didn't ask again. _I suppose they more than anyone can sense my emotions… _She thought miserably. Lunchtime rolled around, and Kanehara made her way to the roof. She sat against the fence, not touching her bento that lay beside her, still wrapped.

"Alright, Satsuki! Something's wrong, now what is it?!" a voice demanded. Kanehara was suddenly pulled forward. Rukia had grabbed the front of her uniform and was now shaking her vigorously. "Come on! You can't be moping around for nothing!"

"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime said worriedly, putting a hand on Rukia's shoulder. "Shouldn't you be a bit more gentle-"

"No! If she's not gonna talk, I'm gonna make her talk!" Rukia shouted, shaking Kanehara again.

Kanehara's face remained emotionless; her eyes had lost their sparkle. Rukia let go, and Kanehara slumped against the fence again. Ichigo, Ishida, and Chad had come through the door now. There was silence between the three girls. The men walked over and sat down near the others.

"Aou-atama, what's wrong?" Ichigo asked, studying Kanehara's face. Kanehara just shook her head again; she couldn't find the will to speak. "Is it really that bad that you can't even talk about it?" Kanehara didn't respond. He sighed in frustration.

"I'm sorry to make you all worry so much, but really, I'm fine. I just… am a bit sick. That's all." Kanehara lied quietly, "It's drained all my energy." She finished, staring at the ground.

"Liar." Ishida said, opening his bento, his face hidden behind his raven bangs.

Kanehara didn't reply. She picked up her bento, but didn't open it.

"Fine, we won't ask. But, we will find out, got it?" Ichigo stated firmly while pulling his bento open and picking up his chopsticks.

The rest of the group gradually began to talk about other things, leaving Kanehara to her own thoughts. She thanked them mentally, locking herself inside her mind, as she drifted onto thoughts of darkened streets and dragging suitcases through torrents of rain.

The clouds had thickened, and the temperature proceeded to drop throughout the week. It was Wednesday morning, and Kanehara climbed once again onto the bus just as the rain had started to sprinkle. She had brought along her jacket this time, not having bought an umbrella since the last rainstorm. As she sat staring out of the window, she remembered the many hours last night she had spent sorting her belongings into boxes, and all the boxes stood next to the door, stacked neatly. Kanehara clenched her teeth as she wondered where she would stay, knowing full well that she didn't have much money left. _I could always find a nice cave. _She thought wryly, twisting her blue hair between her fingers.

No one had asked her again why she had not spoken at all, not even to the teacher when she was asked a question. Through the thick of the gloom and gray, another Hollow had attacked, probably drawn to the school from the strong pulse of reiatsu. Ichigo had transformed and taken it out with no difficulty, and the other five let out, once again, barely audible sighs of relief.

_There have been a lot of Hollow attacks lately, _Kanehara thought, her eyebrows bent slightly. _I wonder how come?_

The rain pounded against the classroom window. The bell rang for dismissal and Kanehara left as fast as she could, leaving behind five very worried and confused highschool students.

_Thursday morning_, _the last day._ Kanehara thought hopelessly as she dragged her boxes one by one down the staircase and onto the curb. The rain had begun to pour, but Kanehara couldn't even find the energy to care anymore. She had wrapped the box she was taking with her in plastic; the others had been marked 'Free' and left on the curb. Kanehara had locked her door for the last time before returning the key and her spare to Mr. Takenawa. Kanehara knew there was no way she could go to school today, so she began to wander.  
She held the box by the plastic bag it was encased in and walked through the rain. She stopped every now and again to sit on a bench. Once, she had glanced at her watch, it was five o'clock. With a jolt, Kanehara realized she had been homeless for nine hours. The icy hand of depression had a death grip around her heart, squeezing mercilessly.

The rain had not eased it's pounding, and Kanehara had sought refuge underneath the limbs of an old oak tree in the park not far from the heart of Karakura town. The sun had set, and the temperature had dropped another ten degrees, Kanehara thought, and shivered, pulling her thick jacket more tightly around her. She drew her denim-clad legs closer to her and unwillingly drifted into an uneasy sleep, completely exhausted from the day's events.

* * *

Orihime stood at Ichigo's door, waiting for someone to answer. A moment later, Ichigo opened the door and his eyebrows shot up.

"Inoue! What are you doing here?" he asked confusedly, looking her drenched appearance up and down.

Orihime bit her lip and played with a lock of orange hair. "I'm really worried about Kanehara-san… She's been acting so strange lately, and she didn't show up for school today." Orihime's voice wavered; her gray eyes had tears in the corners.

Ichigo blanched and put his hands on her shoulders. "She's fine, Orihime! She was probably…" He seemed to be racking his brain for an excuse for Kanehara, but couldn't. He sighed.

"I went to her apartment to check up on her, and the landlord said she'd been evicted." Orihime's tears leaked out, and dripped slowly down her cheeks. "That's why she's been so depressed! And now she's probably out there right now!" Her voice raised an octave higher. "She didn't want to tell us because she knew we'd offer to let her stay with us!"

"And she didn't want to burden us." Ichigo's face darkened. "Kuso!" he swore, running a hand through his orange hair.

Orihime was crying now. "We have to find her, Ichigo! Please, she might be hurt or sick! In this weather-" Ichigo cut her frantically trembling voice off.

"I'm no good at finding reiatsu. Come on, we're going to get help." Ichigo said reassuringly, turning to slip his shoes on and grabbing a jacket. "DAD! I'm going out!" he shouted down the hall. Ichigo shut the door to the Kurosaki house behind him, then the pair of redheads dashed out into the freezing rain.

Ichigo and Orihime had arrived, panting and soaking at the door of the Urahara Shouten thirty minutes later. Ichigo pulled the sliding door open and the pair stepped inside.

"Urahara!" Ichigo called, and waited for a reply. His heart was pounding, and he didn't care to try and stop it.

The sound of wooden sandals clacking against the floor grew louder and Urahara came around the corner. "Kurosaki-kun! Inoue-san! What are you-" Ichigo cut him off.

"Kanehara's gone." He said urgently, and Urahara's eyes flashed. "She was evicted today, and she's run off."

Tessai had entered the room; he loomed over Urahara's shoulder and crossed his arms. "Kanehara-san's gone?"

Urahara stood there for a moment, absorbing the shock. "What are we standing around for?!" his entire personality had done a complete turnaround. "Tessai," he said turning to him, "Make sure Ururu and Jinta don't leave. If she turns up here, I want you to make sure she stays." Tessai nodded. "Inoue-san," Urahara turned to face Orihime. "I want you to stay here," he held up a hand to halt her protesting, "I need you to stay here with Tessai incase she does need healing." His jaw tightened noticeably. "Let's go."

The sky had darkened and a wind had picked up. Ichigo and Urahara had been searching for over an hour, but there was no sign of her. Then he felt it. It was so weak, Urahara didn't notice it before, and then it nearly vanished completely. The reiatsu was wavering faintly.

"The park!" Urahara shouted to Ichigo over the roaring of the wind. The Shinigami representative nodded, and the two took off down another street heading towards one of the national parks, the rain soaking them both completely. Urahara clenched his fist around his cane, determination written across his face.

They reached the park in a matter of minutes and dashed in without stopping. The blonde manager led the way, the reiatsu still faint, but he knew they were closing in on it.

"Urahara!" Ichigo yelled, pointing to a figure underneath a tree almost fifty feet from them.

Urahara could just make out the outline of Kanehara, and his heart rate increased, his adrenaline pumping. They skidded to a stop and Urahara knelt down in the semi-shelter of the oak tree. Kanehara didn't move. Urahara quickly put two fingers to Kanehara's pale neck. He barely moved until he had realized her heart was still beating. Urahara sighed in relief and noticed a large box wrapped in plastic next to her.

"Take the box." He said to Ichigo, and lifted Kanehara into his arms, hooking her arms around his neck. Her head fell limply against his chest, her blue hair soaking and stuck to the sides of her face. "Hang on, Satsuki." He whispered in her ear, and then began to run with Ichigo back towards the street.

* * *

Ichigo pulled the sliding door open and dropped the box just inside the door, and quickly stepped aside so Urahara could enter, carrying the limp body of Kanehara that he held tightly against him.

"Satsuki!" Orihime shrieked as she dashed forward to Urahara, who handed Kanehara to Tessai's outstretched arms. The giant of a man carried Kanehara off up the staircase, and Urahara collapsed against the wall in relief, dropping his cane with a clatter. Ichigo walked over to him, pushing his sopping orange hair out of his eyes.

"Thanks." He said shortly, and Urahara looked up and nodded once.

"Thank you. If you hadn't told me…" Urahara faltered, and Ichigo nodded.

"Urahara-san!" Orihime threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Urahara gaped and felt his cheeks warm. "Thank you! Thank you!" she cried, tears running down her cheeks as she buried her face in his soaking chest. Urahara had almost recovered from the stun when Orihime let go and promptly grabbed Ichigo and pulled him into a tight hug, too. "Thank you, Ichigo!" she sniffled. Ichigo's cheeks turned the slightest shad of pink to match Urahara's, and tried to shy away, embarrassed.

"Really, Inoue…" Ichigo muttered; his arms still pinned to his sides.

"I was so worried about all of you!" She sobbed, letting go of Ichigo. She beamed through her tears and turned on her heel, and dashed up the stairs. The two men stood there for a moment, still stunned by what Orihime did, when Urahara cleared his throat and Ichigo took off his jacket and busied himself with shaking his head.

"I'm going to go up and get Orihime and walk her back home." Ichigo said, and walked out of the storefront to the staircase, and then disappeared up it.

Urahara stood there, alone now. He was soaked to the bone, his clothes clinging to his slender frame. Only his breathing broke the silence of the now empty room. He swallowed and sank down to his knees, closing his eyes. He buried his face in his hand and felt the exhaustion and relief flood his body.

"Kisuke."

Urahara dropped his hand and looked up at Yoruichi who sat next to him, watching him with her luminescent yellow eyes. He sat up straight and cleared his throat. "Yoruichi, I didn't see you…"

"I know." She said, and her brow furrowed slightly. "You were scared, weren't you?" she asked gruffly with a tinge of disbelief. The end of her tail twitched as she surveyed the manager.

Urahara sighed and pulled off his sopping hat, running a hand through his drenched white-blonde hair. "I suppose I can't hide it from you, ne?" he murmured, and closed his eyes. "Yes, I was scared tonight." He leaned against the wall, opening his eyes. He stared at the hat in his hands.

Yoruichi sighed and padded closer, putting a paw on Urahara's hand. He looked over at her. "I won't tell anyone, Kisuke, if that's what you're worried about."

He hesitated for a moment, and Yoruichi caught the pause. He seemed to rethink his next action and instead spoke. "Thank you, Yoruichi." He stood up, and turned away. Urahara slipped out of his sandals and walked barefoot across the wooden floor, his clothes dripping occasionally, and mounted the stairs.

Yoruichi smiled as she watched the retreating form of her old friend disappear up the staircase.

* * *

Urahara pushed open the door to his room and saw a small gaggle of people gathered around Kanehara's futon. Everyone turned to look at him as he walked over to join the small crowd.

"Kisuke-san," Ururu began softly, "Satsuki-san is alright."

"She doesn't appear to have any symptoms or injuries." Tessai said quietly, "But she's still unconscious. Orihime didn't have to heal her." Orihime nodded, her tears had dried by now.

"We'd better go, Inoue." Ichigo said, putting a hand on her shoulder and looked down at her. Orihime nodded again and she didn't argue.

"May I stop by tomorrow, Urahara-san, to see how she's doing?" Orihime asked.

Urahara smiled and nodded. "Of course, Inoue-san."

Orihime beamed and followed Ichigo out of the room.

"Jinta, time for bed." Tessai said gently in his deep voice, waiting for the redheaded boy to leave the room. Jinta glared angrily up at Tessai.

"I don't need a bedtime!" he growled quietly, but stormed out of the room anyways.

Tessai watched Urahara for a moment, meeting his shadowed blue-gray eyes, and nodded. He walked across the room and bent to leave. As he passed, he muttered "Soft spot." and disappeared through the doorway.

"Ururu, could you change Satsu-chan into some dry clothes? I'll be back in a moment." He said, taking a pair of emerald green pajama pants out of his closet.

Ururu bowed. "Of course, Kisuke-san." She immediately turned and opened one of the drawers to Kanehara's dresser, searching for a pair of pajamas. Urahara slipped quietly out of the room, closing the door silently behind him.

Ururu found what she was looking for, and laid it on the bed beside Kanehara's slumbering form. She propped Kanehara on her side and proceeded to remove her shirt. She laid it carefully on the floor. She turned back and noticed five long, thick scars diagonally down Kanehara's back. Ururu blinked and touched one carefully. The smooth skin shone slightly, and she pulled her away, slipping the girl into a warm, dry tank top. She continued removing clothing and replaced them all with the dry pajamas. Ururu picked up the wet clothing and carried it to the door, opening it.

"You can go back inside, Kisuke-san. Good night." Ururu smiled softly up at Urahara, then continued on her way to the bathroom to hang the clothes to dry.

Urahara re-entered his bedroom, and closed the door behind him. He walked over to Kanehara now dry and tucked in. The former Shinigami knelt beside her futon and watched her sleep, lightly brushing her bangs out of her eyes and tucking a loose lock of blue hair behind her ear.

"Satsuki… Why didn't you tell us?" he whispered, a curious expression on his features. He sighed quietly and cupped her face for a moment with his right hand. "Good night." He said softly. He rose and walked back across the room. The lights dimmed again and Urahara slid under his own covers, sleep tugging at his consciousness. As soon as he closed his eyes, he had fallen asleep.

* * *

**Author's Note: Ichigo's nickname for Kanehara, 'Aou-atama' literally means 'Blue head'. I hope you all like this chapter! Thank you to Solstarset for the inspiration for chapter nine.**

**Read and review!**


	11. Medicine From An Ad

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.**

**Author's Note: It seems as though I wasn't clear in my typing. Scars, as we all know, are puffy, shiny, and smooth. When Ururu touched Kanehara's scars (from the Hollow attack), they were shiny, not glowing. It was just shiny, that's all. Thank you for reading this!**

* * *

Kanehara mumbled something in her sleep, and pulled the covers up around her neck. _Covers!_ She sat bolt upright and looked around quickly. _I'm here? But how…_ A figure rolled in his sleep and she knew the answer. Kanehara sighed and slumped back in her futon, a wave of emotion hit her and she balled her fists tightly. _No one should have to burden themselves with another mouth to feed, just because of what happened to me. _She stood up quietly and tugged open the second drawer to her dresser pulling out her small duffel bag. She closed the drawer and opened the one above it; quickly stuffing whatever clothing she had left in there into her bag. She changed, tucking her pajamas into the bag as well. 

Tiptoeing across the wooden floor, she was almost at the door when Urahara shifted and murmured something in his sleep. She felt her stomach bottom out. Kanehara walked silently over to the mattress where Urahara slept and knelt beside it. "Thank you, Urahara-san." She whispered in his ear, and then stood up. She watched him for a moment, and then mentally slapped herself. _You've got to get out of here before everyone wakes up. _With one last glance over her shoulder, Kanehara slid through the sliding door and disappeared from sight. She had reached the bottom of the stairs and continued quietly across the floor. Kanehara was nearly at the door when she froze.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Kanehara clenched her jaw. _Kuso. _She turned around and opened her mouth to explain, and there was no one there. Flabbergasted, she looked around, and then noticed a black cat sitting on the stair near the back of the store. Blinking confusedly, Kanehara turned around again bending over to pick up her shoes.

"I said, where do you think you're going?"

The male voice was closer this time. Kanehara whipped around, expecting to see someone there, but she still saw no one. "Hello?" she asked tentatively, setting her duffel bag on the ground beside her shoes. The cat was now sitting a few feet from her. She and the cat stared at each other for a moment, green and golden gazes meeting, and Kanehara turned back around slowly, her eyes not leaving the cat.

"Are you going to ignore me?"

Kanehara leapt about a foot in the air and quickly stifled her gasp of surprise. She had seen it with her own eyes. "Oh my god, you talked!"

The cat sighed exasperatedly. "Yes, the cat talks. After everything you've seen in the last month, is this such a great surprise?"

Kanehara stared at the cat, mildly horrified, her eyes wide. _Oh, I get it! _Kanehara smiled and nodded and held up her index finger to the cat. "I'm hallucinating." She told the cat matter-of-factly. "I just need some more sleep…" Kanehara keeled over and crumpled to the ground, unconscious. The cat blinked and leapt over to Kanehara and put it's paw against her forehead. It yelped and withdrew its paw, then dashed across the room and up the staircase.

The cat nudged the sliding door open and proceeded to leap and land on the slumbering form of Urahara. "KISUKE, YOU LAZY ASSHOLE!" Urahara sat up quickly, alarmed, and looked around, and then noticed Yoruichi.

"Lazy asshole? Was that really neces-?"

"Kanehara's burning up!" Yoruichi growled, jumping off Urahara as he stood up. He glanced over to the futon in the corner. Not seeing Kanehara, he frowned confusedly.

"Where-?"

"Downstairs!"

Yoruichi flew down the stairs, across the shop and stopped by Kanehara. Urahara strode quickly towards Kanehara and Yoruichi, and knelt down beside the blue-haired highschool student. He gingerly put the back of his hand against her forehead, and withdrew it quickly with a sharp intake of breath.

"Well? Get her back upstairs! Come on!" Yoruichi said exasperatedly, ramming Urahara's leg with her head.

Urahara thought it wise not to say anything to Yoruichi for the next minute or so. Carefully, he slid his arms underneath Kanehara once again and lifted her up. Her skin burned against his, and he almost winced from the heat. Her head rested against his bare shoulder as he carried her gingerly back across the room and up the staircase.

Urahara set her down on her futon, gently pulling the covers back up. He stood and looked down at Yoruichi. "Could you keep an eye on her? I'm going to get some ice for her." He said quietly and strode out of the room.

Urahara found a compress in one of the kitchen drawers and proceeded to fill it with ice from the icebox in the freezer. He had just sealed it when he heard a yowl from upstairs. Frowning, he shut the freezer and, ice compress in hand, hurried up the stairs to see what was the matter. Urahara froze, terror-stricken, to see Tessai bending over Kanehara with a spoon in his hand and a bottle in the other. Yoruichi sweatdropped and backed away, sensing danger.

"Tessai! What did you feed her?" Urahara asked frantically, his blue-gray eyes wide.

Tessai looked around, his glasses glinted. He showed Urahara the bottle. "I just gave her some medicine." He said solemnly.

Then a horrible thought dawned on Urahara. "Is that that Chinese medicine you got through mail order?!" he demanded. Tessai just stared at him. _Oh my god. _"Do you remember what happened the _last time_ you gave someone medicine?!" Urahara said exasperatedly.

_ "I have an __excellent__ medicine that works on colds." Tessai said, an evil glint in his glasses._

_Urahara gulped and stared at Tessai from over his shoulder. "Medicine…?"_

_Tessai left the shop, and then returned a moment later with a tray that had a box of medicine and a glass of water on it._

_"This expired two years ago!" Urahara exclaimed, unease bubbling up from the pit of his stomach. It was times like this he questioned his taste in friends._

_"It works while you sleep!" Tessai assured the blonde manager, extracting one of the pills from the box._

_Urahara was severely frightened by now. "No, no, no! That's not the problem!"_

_"Say 'ahh'."_

_"Ahh- wait! Wha-what? Wha-what?!" Urahara realized too late that he had been tricked. Tessai had pinned him down and force-fed him the pill._

"I was on that toilet for five hours!!" Urahara exclaimed pointing a finger at himself, emphasizing his pain.

Yoruichi thought the situation would've been very comical if Kanehara hadn't been seriously sick. The blue-haired teen rolled over and clutched her stomach, moaning. Yoruichi glanced from Tessai to Urahara; neither of the ancient men had said anything. Then Urahara had crossed the floor, scooping Kanehara into his arms.

"I'm taking her to the clinic." He told Tessai, turning and walking quickly out of the room.

Tessai and Yoruichi sat there for a moment, wondering if Urahara would realize that he was still in his pajamas. Just as they had thought it, Urahara strode back into the room.

"As soon as I'm dressed."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Urahara stopped at the glass doors of the Kurosaki Clinic. He shifted Kanehara to one arm and pulled the door open. He propped it open with his back and, with a bit of difficulty, made his way inside. He had heard a bell on the overhead go off, and Kurosaki Isshin strode out from behind one of the clinic's doors. He stopped in his tracks and stared at the visitor with the unconscious girl in his arms. 

"Kisuke?" he asked, walking over and looking down at the girl, examining her. "What happened to her?" he asked, and then looked up at him.

"She has a very high fever, and Tessai's just fed her some… Medicine." Urahara finished, cringing slightly.

Isshin paled slightly at the word 'medicine'. "Oh god." He whispered, his brown eyes wide. "There's an open bed in the back, follow me." Ichigo's father led the way through a large hallway to a large, open room divided into sections.

"Here," he Isshin said, pulling back a mint green curtain to allow the odd couple to pass. "Set her down there and I'll be right back."

Urahara laid Kanehara down on the generic mint green cot and sat down in the chair next to her, leaning on his cane. She rolled on her side towards him, clutching her stomach. He could've sworn he heard her swear under her breath. Isshin returned, sliding through a gap in the toothpaste-coloured curtains. He laid the blanket he was carrying down, spreading it out and covering Kanehara with it.

"I'm going to give her a once over, just to make sure it isn't something serious." Isshin said, putting his stethoscope into his ears. "Can you hold her up?" he asked Urahara, pulling Kanehara gingerly into a sitting position. Urahara held her in place, her head resting against his shoulder. Isshin rolled up her shirt a few times, Urahara turned away pointedly, and slid the stethoscope underneath and was still, listening intently.

"Nothing seems to be wrong…" Isshin murmured, doing the same with her front, Urahara was still turned in the other direction. Isshin pulled the stethoscope out of his ears, letting it hang around his neck, and rolled Kanehara's shirt down. Urahara turned back and laid Kanehara back down. Isshin scratched the back of his head. "She probably has the flu, it's nothing serious." He said, and then frowned. "What exactly did Tessai give her?"

Urahara sweatdropped. "A Chinese medicine that he got through mail order from the industrial ads in the newspaper." The blonde cringed.

Isshin's mouth formed a small 'o' of understanding. "We best keep her here for the night, I hope no irrational symptoms will show up…" the brown-haired man swallowed. "But, here's a bucket." He said, handing a white bucket to Urahara. "It's best if she throws it up. Gross, but possibly necessary."

"Of course." Urahara said, taking the bucket from him, "We've both seen worse, you know." He smirked.

Isshin laughed and patted him on the shoulder as he turned to leave. "I'll be checking in on her in four hours or so." He said over his shoulder as he pulled the mint green curtain back to leave.

Urahara looked back down at the shivering girl, sleeping fitfully and curled up with her hands clenched against her chest. Quietly, he pulled the chair closer to her bed and brushed her bangs out of her face, tucking them behind her ear. Kanehara shuddered and moaned in her sleep, wincing noticeably. In an effort to comfort her, Urahara pushed his hand through balled fist and held it tightly. He sat there, his hand in hers, watching her, willing the pain to ebb so she could at least rest peacefully.

* * *

Isshin returned four hours later, pulling his stethoscope around his shoulders. "Has her pain eased at all?" he asked, putting the back of his hand to Kanehara's forehead.

"I don't believe so, but she's stopped shivering." Urahara said quietly, his gray eyes never leaving Kanehara's face.

"Hmm… Has she thrown up?" Isshin asked, pulling his hand back, and slipped his stethoscope into his ears to listen to her heart.

"Three times."

"You stayed?" Isshin asked incredulously as his eyebrows rose, letting his stethoscope hang around his neck.

"Yes, I did." Urahara lowered his voice. Kanehara's hand clenched his and she gritted her teeth. He looked up quickly, a reflex action. Isshin watched his comrade for a moment, and then smiled slightly.

"She's the reason you were injured?" the doctor grinned devilishly. From what he could see of Urahara's face under the brim of his hat, Urahara seemed to compose himself. "Training?" Isshin's grin grew. He could tell he was guessing correctly.

Urahara pulled his hat down with his left hand, since his right was occupied. "Yes, she is the one I'm training."

"Is that why you said you didn't think some were 'up to it'? You don't think she's up to it?"

"I _know_ she isn't." Urahara said sharply, leaning forward.

Kanehara's mind swam in and out of focus, the voices faintly ringing in her head. _Oh god, I feel horrible…_

Isshin was silent. "Why not?" he asked finally, after a minute.

The manager sighed, hanging his cane on the arm of the chair. "She's only just discovered her powers, Isshin. She can't control them nor can she summon them at will."

Kanehara began to tell the two voices apart. _Are they…? Talking about me? _She tried to listen, but her head was pounding, the pain distracting her. _That sounds like… Urahara… But… Who's he talking to?_ Kanehara didn't recognize the other male voice. Then another thought wandered drunkenly into her mind. _Where the hell am I?_

"Dad?"

"Yuzu, that won't get his attention! OLD MAN!"

The two men looked up towards the door.

"Are you staying for the night, then?" Isshin asked, glancing over to Urahara. He nodded and Isshin turned to leave. "I think she's coming to." He said, pulling the curtain back and leaving, taking the bucket with him.

Kanehara heard the other man leave and she struggled to open her eyes. "Urahara…?" she tried to ask, but it came out instead as a soft, incoherent noise. Urahara's attention switched to Kanehara and he watched her pale face; he felt her hand twist slightly in his, her grip loosening. He let go of her hand a split second before she opened her eyes, blinking groggily.

"Where… Am I…?" she asked slowly, her voice cracking. She coughed, realizing how dry her throat was.

"You're in the Kurosaki Clinic." Urahara told her quietly, handing her the glass of water Isshin had set on her bedside table. She sat up with some trouble, leaning against the wall and took the glass from him gratefully. Kanehara glanced around the curtained section of the clinic she was in. Machines and a heart monitor hung on the walls, an IV rack stood vacant next to her bed. The pink cotton blanket she had over her was a nice colour contrast from the ugly, generic mint-green shade of the curtains.

She took another sip of water and Urahara spoke again. "Why didn't you tell us that you had been evicted? We would've let you stay with us."

Kanehara put the glass down, and slunk back under her covers, drawing them up to her nose. "Just that." She said, and coughed. "You would've taken me in. I didn't want anyone to go out of their way for me." Kanehara sniffled and closed her eyes.

Urahara sighed and leaned forward, clasping his hands. "It isn't any trouble for us to let you stay. But instead, you ran away, and now you're sick…" He sighed again.

Kanehara felt the guilt grip her insides tightly, and moaned quietly. "My head hurts…" she mumbled, more to herself, ducking her head under the covers. All that he could see of her now was her disarrayed blue hair. "I'm sorry." Her voice slightly muffled by the blankets. Urahara smiled, playing with the side of her blanket, watching the lump shudder and cough again. Kanehara pulled the blankets back a few inches and a pair of bleary green eyes peered out at him.

"Did I throw up?" she asked hesitantly, wincing.

Urahara chuckled. "Yes."

"In front of you?"

"Yes."

Kanehara hid herself back under the covers. "Oh god…" she groaned. "Why didn't you leave?" the lump asked.

Urahara smiled again, hiding a chuckle, continuing to play with the edge of her blanket. "I've seen much, much worse, Satsu-chan."

The lump was silent, coughing once. She drew the covers back down past her nose and stared at him. "Why are you staying with me?" she asked, frowning.

The manager smiled again. "Because I was worried, and I'd like to make sure you make it through the night without dying."

The green eyes narrowed sleepily. "Not funny."

Urahara laughed. "I know. I'm sorry. You won't die; it's only the flu. Oh, and Tessai decided it would be best to give you medicine before you left. That might kill you."

"What medicine?" the green eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"A medicine he ordered through the mail from the industrial ads in the newspaper." The blonde answered, shifting uncomfortably. "That's what made you throw up."

"Wait… So, Tessai gave me some unknown gunk in a bottle that he got from a _newspaper?!_" Kanehara's voice rose dangerously and she sat bolt upright. Her muscles screamed in protest to the sudden movement.

"That was my reaction exactly. Now, lie down, you need your rest." Urahara urged gently, leaning towards her.

Unwillingly, she lay back down, crossing her arms. "Is it really going to kill me?"

Urahara chuckled and patted her arm. "I was only kidding, Satsu-chan. You'll live, but you need to rest." He repeated, his blue-gray eyes tired and shadowed.

Kanehara sighed, and pulled herself under the covers again. She lay on her side, away from Urahara and closed her eyes. Urahara settled himself into a more comfortable position.

"Urahara-san?" came a timidly quiet voice.

"Yes, Satsu-chan?" he asked, raising a blonde eyebrow.

There was a pause. "Thank you."

Urahara smiled gently. "You're welcome, Satsu-chan." He chuckled.

* * *

**Author's Note: I apologize for the wait everyone! I feel so bad I had to make you wait, but here you go! I promise I'll make it up to you in chapter 12!**

**Read and review!**


	12. It Was An Accident!

**Disclaimer: Me + Bleach No own. Oh yeah. I don't own "Pretty Fly For A White Guy", either. You'll find out. NO SKIPPING THE CHAPTER TO FIND IT! It'll be a nice surprise when the song pops up. (Evil grin)**

* * *

******  
**

******Author's Note: I have changed many things about this story to date, and I shall list them as follows:  
1. The rating has gone up. (I've written the ending to this story, and it gets pretty graphic. The last word is "Kisuke", and it probably won't change.)  
2. I've re-edited chapters 1-7, so if you should feel the need while waiting for chapter 13, you can catch up on my mindset for the rest of the story.  
3. The temporary chapter 12 is now on my profile.**

******That's all! Enjoy chapter 12!**

* * *

The sun was shining through the small window above Kanehara's bed when Isshin did his rounds the next morning. He smiled when he saw the two occupants of the curtained-off area. Kanehara's arm hung off the side of the bed, she was facing Urahara, her blue hair had fallen across her cheek, hiding her face partially. Urahara had fallen asleep in his chair, his head hung placidly down. Both were still sleeping peacefully. Isshin was still smiling when he slipped back out through the curtains again.

* * *

"Good morning."

When Kanehara didn't respond, the cat sighed and rolled its yellow eyes. Yoruichi plodded across the futon, onto Kanehara's sleeping body, and pushed her paws hard on her nose, closing her airways. Yoruichi waited. Kanehara stopped breathing altogether, and for five minutes, Yoruichi wondered apprehensively if she had killed her. Kanehara sat bolt upright, gasping for air. She clutched her chest while breathing heavily.

"ARE YOU NUTS?!" she yelled at the cat, glaring in a combination of confusion and anger. Kanehara paused. "Oh, it's only a cat…" Her breathing slowed and she scratched Yoruichi behind her ears. "You know, kitty, you look familiar…"

"Of course I do. I caught you trying to run away." Yoruichi said, purring as Kanehara scratched behind her left ear.

Kanehara screamed. "OH MY GOD! IT WASN'T A DREAM?!" Her green eyes widened in shock and she shot backwards against the wall as fast as she could, pressing herself against it.

"Satsu-chan! Are you alr-" Urahara slid the door sideways quickly, but stopped when he saw Yoruichi. "Ah," he chuckled walking in calmly. "I see you've met our little Yoruichi-san!"

"You _know _this thing _talks_?!" Kanehara asked incredulously, glaring up at Urahara. "And you couldn't give me _any _heads up that there was a talking _CAT_ in the house?!" Her voice was dangerously low, almost a growl as her brilliant green eyes narrowed to slits.

Urahara sweatdropped and he shook his hands in front of himself. "It's nothing like that, Satsu-chan! Yoruichi just showed up unexpectedly, and I didn't have a chance to introduce h-"

"Yeaaah, right." Kanehara cut the manager off and folded her arms across her chest, slumping against the wall. "So, you're Yoruichi-san?" she asked, talking to the cat sitting calmly on her lap.

"That's right." Yoruichi nodded.

"And you talk… Because…?" Kanehara raised a blue eyebrow. "Did you fall into some radioactive goo and now you have super-kitty powers?"

Yoruichi snorted. "Don't be ridiculous, girl! 'Super-kitty powers'? That's the best theory I've heard yet!"

"Well then? How come you can talk?!"

"You don't need to know!"

"But if you're gonna pop up like some groundhog when I least expect it, I should _at least _know _WHY _you talk!"

Urahara stood there in silence, completely and utterly useless, watching the strange conversation; his head moving side to side as each female spoke. He thought it was rather like watching a tennis match, only without the racquets and ball.

"I told you, you don't need to know, so I'm not going to tell you!" the cat hissed, her fur standing on end.

"Jeez! Fine! I was just _asking_…"

The two sat in silence for a moment, gold and green gazes glaring daggers at each other. Urahara wondered if he said something, would one or both kill him? _Hmm. Interesting thought._ Urahara was distracted by his own wandering mind for a minute. Kanehara broke the silence.

"Are we friends, mister cat?" Kanehara asked, raising a blue eyebrow again.

Yoruichi didn't say anything. She just stared at the teen, unmoving like a statue.

"Alright, we're friends. But I'm not '_mister cat_'," Yoruichi growled, her eyes narrowing, "Call me Yoruichi."

"Sure." Kanehara agreed, happy to comply. She rubbed Yoruichi's chin, and the cat closed her eyes lazily, purring loudly.

Urahara blinked. He thought he had misheard both females and he frowned in confusion. _How can girls be worst enemies one second and best friends the next?! _Even being as old as he was, he had still never been able to figure out the mind of a woman.

"Damn confusing females." He muttered confounded, shaking his hat-clad head slowly. Urahara grinned and crouched beside the two.

"Satsu-chan, I think it's best for you to stay in bed today." He said, "I don't want you getting more sick. I'll call your school to let them know."

Kanehara looked over at him and nodded, smiling. "Of course, Urahara-san. Thank you."

Urahara cupped her chin and grinned crookedly. "Thank you." He stood and walked over to the door. "Yoruichi-san? Aren't you coming?" he asked, but saw she was much too preoccupied with being showered with attention and belly rubs. He laughed and shut the door, disappearing from view.

Kanehara sighed and slid back beneath her covers. Yoruichi curled up beside her, purring softly as Kanehara rubbed behind her ears.

"Hey, Yoruichi?" Kanehara asked, her voice curious.

One yellow eye opened lazily. "Yes?"

"How long have you known Urahara-san?" she asked, her eyes closing tiredly.

"A _very _long time, lets just say that." The cat chuckled, tucking her tail around herself.

"Kay." Kanehara said simply, and yawned.

Both girls fell asleep within minutes.

* * *

Kanehara grimaced in her sleep and coughed several times. She blearily opened her eyes and sat up. Yoruichi was sound asleep, curled up into a little black ball. _I need a drink…_ Crawling out of bed and succeeding in not awakening Yoruichi, Kanehara stood up and began to walk towards the door. She had almost lost her balance once; she was swaying so much as she tried to maintain a standing position. 

Kanehara walked slowly down the stairs, clutching the railing for support so she didn't lose her balance. As she rounded the corner into the kitchen, she thought she could hear someone singing and she looked across the room to see who it was.

"And all the girlies say I'm pretty fly for a white guy!"

Kanehara blinked and sweatdropped. She stood there in the doorway in her burgundy flannel pajamas, shocked, and watched Urahara dance around the kitchen with her iPod in his ears.

"He may not have a clue and he may not have style, but everything he lacks, well he makes up in denial!"

"Oh. Dear god." Kanehara said quietly, her green eyes widened, all thoughts of the drink abandoned. "He found my iPod." Of course, Urahara couldn't hear her; he was too busy prancing around like the loony he was, his back to her.

"Give it to me baby! Uh huh, uh huh!" he sang, imitating a girly high-pitched voice, shaking his rear in a not-very-attractive manner. "Give it to me baby! Uh huh, uh huh!"

Urahara turned around, about to sing another line, and froze. He blanched and closed his mouth, quickly taking the ear buds out of his ears and holding them and the mp3 player behind his back.

"It's not what it looks like!" he said quickly, a blush rising in his cheeks. "I… I… Er… I- I- I was just…" he flustered, trying to explain. "I just happened to find this… It was just lying out on your dresser and I… I found a song that was…"

Kanehara just stood there, staring. Suddenly, she dropped to her knees, roaring with laughter. She clutched her stomach and fell to the ground.

"Oh… My… God!" she managed to squeeze out between giggles. She looked up at him standing there, beet red and stumbling for words and began to laugh again.

"Please don't tell anyone!" he pleaded, striding over to where she lay on the floor doubled-over in laughter. "Please, Satsu-chan!" Urahara begged, crouching down beside her.

Kanehara brushed away a tear and cracked up again, shaking her head. _Blackmail! _She thought triumphantly.

"Please!" Urahara begged again, "I'll do anything!"

He immediately regretted the words that had just come from his mouth.

Kanehara giggled and stared up at his upside-down face from her position on the ground. "Anything?" she asked, cocking a blue eyebrow and smirking evilly.

His half-shadowed eyes widened. Urahara knew he had dug himself his own grave. He nodded slowly, cringing as thoughts of what she would make him do ran amuck through his head.

"I think I'll have to think about it," Kanehara said, her voice layered with a dark humor, and smirked again at Urahara's horrified expression. "Don't worry, Urahara-san," she grinned, reaching around him and taking her iPod back, "I'm not going to tell anyone."

Urahara gulped, suddenly becoming very aware that Kanehara _might _be a bit more evil than he once had thought.

Kanehara smiled sweetly and narrowed her green eyes. "Yet."

* * *

"How did you come across that thing anyways?" Urahara asked, following Kanehara upstairs, mostly to make sure she didn't collapse and kill herself by falling down the staircase. 

"It was a gift from Ishida-kun." Kanehara chirped over her shoulder and rounded the corner into their room. She stopped and turned around, the water sloshing in the glass she was holding. "I've thought of something you can do." She said, raising her eyebrows.

The blonde winced and awaited the task.

"Since I don't really want to go back and lie down, you can fight me!" Kanehara stated happily, taking a sip of water.

"Absolutely not." The manager said sternly, frowning.

Kanehara narrowed her eyes dangerously. "But you said _anything_-"

"You can barely stand as it is!" he interjected, "I'm not going to fight you when you've still got the remainder of the flu." Urahara said quietly in a fierce tone, narrowing his luminescent blue-gray eyes.

"You too 'fly', mister white guy?" she growled, glaring at the manager. "You said _anything_."

Urahara sighed in frustration and stared at the ceiling exasperatedly. "No." He looked back down at her. "I don't want you to collapse in the middle of the fight! You'd only be taunting death!"

"You don't _die _from the flu!"

"Satsuk-"

"Please, Urahara-san!" Kanehara begged, cutting him off, "I really need to _do _something!"

Urahara lowered his gaze and was silent for a long moment.

"Fine. Get changed." He turned on his heel and shut the door behind him.

* * *

"Hoshi kogeki suru!" 

Urahara lunged at Kanehara, bringing Benihime around to her side. He slashed, and Kanehara dodged by a hair's width. The blade sliced easily through her t-shirt and she winced as her waist stung; the cold steel of the sword had nicked her. She turned and dashed off, trying to get some distance between them. Urahara closed the gap easily. Kanehara panicked and took off in another direction, heading for a large group of rocky cliffs. _Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit… _The two were side by side, Urahara slashed at her again. _Shit!_ Kanehara gasped and fell against the cold, stony wall.

_I'm cornered! _Kanehara realized too late, Urahara had already taken advantage of her vulnerability. He brought Benihime down; his eyes glinted darkly.

"Cancer!" Kanehara shrieked, putting her hands in an attempt to block the imminent attack.

The sword never hit her. Cautiously, Kanehara opened her eyes and saw that Benihime had collided instead with a bright orange barrier. Urahara gritted his teeth and forced the barrier back, trying to break through it. His arms shook with the effort and Kanehara clenched her jaw concentrating on not letting the shield disappear. Then it happened. A crack appeared where Urahara was forcing his blade into the shield. The crack splintered across the orange barrier like a rock nicking a windshield at high speed. Kanehara's eyes widened with panic and her heart began to pound.

_Oh, please hold it! Don't break! Don't break! Don't break! _She begged mentally. Her arms shook with the effort of maintaining the shield.

Her barrier shattered; the particles vanished as quickly as the illusion of the night sky. Urahara lurched forward, his momentum carrying him forward.

_SHIT! _They thought in unison.

Kanehara moved her head a quarter of an inch, the blade whistling past her ear into the rock. Kanehara closed her eyes, ready for Urahara to collide with her. Benihime sunk into the rock as though it were nothing but rice paper. It slid all the way to the hilt, and Urahara collided with Kanehara.

Kanehara gasped as Urahara hit her, and felt something warm press hard against her lips. She opened her eyes in surprise and stared wide-eyed, into Urahara's identical expression.

Urahara let go of the hilt and stumbled backwards, falling to the sandy ground. His hat slipped off his head and flopped lamely to the ground beside him. He stared up at her, shock written clearly over his face.

Kanehara's brilliant green eyes went as wide as dinner plates and she slumped against the rock, her cheeks flushed red. There was a very long, stunned silence.

"You… I… Did- did we just…?" Kanehara couldn't find the right words to say and looked down at the ground in utter disbelief. "But… It was an accident, so that doesn't mean we…"

"Of course not!" Urahara nodded, "It… It was an accident…" He faltered and ran a hand through his messy blonde hair distractedly.

"Let's not tell anyone about this." Kanehara said, crossing her arms tightly around herself.

"Agreed." He said quickly.

"_DID YOU TWO JUST DO WHAT I THINK YOU DID?!_"

Kanehara and Urahara started and whipped their heads towards the sudden outburst. A certain redheaded child stood there gaping and wide-eyed.

"Jinta! It's not what it looks like-!" Urahara began, standing up, but was cut off by Jinta.

"OH MY GOD! YOU_ DID _KISS HER!"

Kanehara clapped a hand to her mouth. "Jinta, please! Don't tell anyone!" Kanehara begged, shouting across the distance to him.

"TESSAI'S _NEVER_ GONNA BELIEVE THIS!" Jinta laughed maniacally and tore off back towards the ladder.

"JINTA!" Urahara yelled, but he was too late. Jinta had already managed to shoot himself halfway up the ladder.

The blonde manager sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his hair distractedly. Kanehara bit her lip and walked timidly over to him as he slid his sword back into the rest of his cane.

"I'm sorry, Urahara-san, this is my fault," she began, "If I didn't ask to you fight, this wouldn't have-"

"It was an accident." Urahara said, more sharply than he intended. He sighed, hanging his head and closing his eyes, and added, "It was unintentional, Satsu-chan."

Kanehara nodded slightly and began to walk back towards the ladder, clutching her side with her left hand. The small cut was beginning scab and she ran her fingers over it subconsciously.

Urahara bent to pick up his fallen hat. He brushed it off and placed it back on his head. Urahara looked up just as Kanehara stumbled and collapsed, unmoving. _Oh no… _He took off towards the girl lying in the sand.

"I told you this wasn't a good idea for your health!" Urahara muttered sternly, coming to a stop in front of her and holding out his hand.

Kanehara pushed herself up shakily and stood up. "I'm fine." She said, ignoring the offered hand. She began to walk again, only to fall back down after five steps.

"That's it," Urahara stated, scooped Kanehara up and hoisted her over his shoulder, "I'm carrying you since you can barely walk."

"Put me down!" Kanehara protested, pounding Urahara's back with her fists. "I can walk fine! Put… Me… Down!" she yelled, hitting him hard with every syllable.

Urahara rolled his eyes and continued on. The hitting grew progressively weaker, but the complaining didn't stop.

* * *

Ichigo looked over to Ishida over his bento. 

"Oi, Ishida." He said, swallowing the remainder of his rice. Ishida looked up at the mention of his name. "You stopped by the clinic last night."

Ishida returned to eating his bento. "Yes, I did," he said, "How is Kanehara-san?"

"Oh, she's fine. Sandal Hat took her home last night." Ichigo gave a noncommittal shrug and took another bite of his rice. "'At 'id oo gib 'er?" he asked with mouth full.

Ishida rolled his eyes at his friend's stupidity. "I gave her an iPod. I figured she would like it, and maybe need it to help cope with everything that's just happened." The raven-haired boy shrugged.

A sudden gust of wind tossed everyone's hair, and Orihime clutched her jacket closer around her.

"We can't sit inside for lunch? It's almost autumn!" Orihime asked, folding her arms across her chest. "The roof gets very cold, Ichigo." She pouted. For a moment no one spoke, and Orihime sighed, voicing the thought that everyone was thinking. "I miss Kanehara-san."

Four other heads nodded in agreement.

* * *

Kanehara glared at the forest green wall from underneath her covers. All that Yoruichi could see of her was a pair of very angry green eyes. 

"I won't tease you," Yoruichi said, padding across the futon and settling herself down beside the lump, "I, unlike some of the people in this house, _do_ care what you and Urahara feel."

Yoruichi waited for a moment, her golden eyes unblinking. Kanehara sat upright and cupped her face in her hands, her elbows resting on her knees. Her hair fell over her shoulder, hiding Kanehara behind a blue curtain.

"Oh god, Yoruichi, you have no idea how bad I feel…" Kanehara groaned through her hands. "I… Oh god…" Kanehara drew her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them, wrapping her arms around her legs.

"He was that bad, huh?" Yoruichi raised an eyebrow, smirking.

Kanehara's head shot up. "No! It was an accident! He accidentally collided with me."

"Kissed." The cat smirked again.

"_Accidentally collided with me._" Kanehara growled, narrowing her eyes.

"Kissed. But go on." Yoruichi grinned as Kanehara glared at her.

"And it wasn't bad!" Kanehara frowned, pouting slightly. "It was just …" Kanehara drifted off and bit her lip, looking worried.

A thought occurred to Yoruichi, and she raised her eyebrows. "You didn't want it to be an accident?"

Kanehara groaned again and hid her face in her knees. "I'm so horrible!" she moaned, covering the back of her head with her hands.

Yoruichi nearly laughed. "You're not horrible, Satsuki." The cat assured her.

Kanehara rested her chin on her knees and began to scratch Yoruichi behind her ears. Yoruichi purred and closed her golden eyes lazily.

"You won't tell him, will you?" Kanehara cringed, waiting for the cat's reply.

"Your secret's safe." Yoruichi said, eyes closed, a purr rumbled deep within her throat.

"Thank you." Kanehara smiled weakly, stroking the cat's soft black fur.

* * *

**************Author's Note: I think out of the whole group, Ishida's the richest, so that's why he gave Kanehara the iPod.**

**************Read and review!**


	13. Difficult Positions

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.**

* * *

"Tessai, it was an accident!" Urahara sighed in frustration. _It's like arguing with a brick wall_, he thought. He'd been trying to convince Tessai for the last half hour that the kiss had not been intentional.

"But, you still kissed her." Tessai grinned. He knew he was getting on Urahara's nerves, and he enjoyed it.

Urahara closed his eyes and rested his face in his hands rubbing his temples. "If you insist, then yes. We did kiss." Urahara caved, ready for the torment. But Tessai was silent. Urahara looked up and frowned.

"You're not teasing me?" He raised a blonde eyebrow in question.

Tessai smirked. "Was it that hard to admit?"

Urahara blinked. "That's what you've been ragging on about?!" he asked in exasperation, glaring at Tessai incredulously. "All that _stress_?! Oh gods!" Urahara dropped his head on the table and closed his eyes as Tessai laughed.

"Tessai, you don't understand, I _can't _feel that way about her. I'm over three hundred years old, she's merely a newborn compared to me! I'm long dead by human standards!" Urahara said, massaging his temples as he sat up.

"And you also haven't been this happy in a very long time." Tessai added, his eyebrows raised, and folded his arms.

Urahara sighed distractedly. "This isn't the time to be discussing this…" he tried to change the topic, but Tessai would have none of it.

"Kisuke, you can't hide your feelings forever. You can try, but it won't last. What if she's injured? Or kidnapped? Or killed? What would you-"

"I don't know!" Urahara snapped. The blonde looked shocked from his own words. "I'm sorry, Tessai, I'm… Not feeling myself right now." He tried to go on, and sighed.

"It's fine, Kisuke." Tessai said, adjusting his glasses. "You're in a difficult position." He said lightly, putting his hands on his knees.

"I'd better…" Urahara didn't finish his sentence as he stood up and walked over to the staircase.

* * *

Urahara stopped at his bedroom door, his hand hovering, about to slide the door sideways when he heard Yoruichi and Kanehara speaking.

"He was that bad, huh?"

"No! It was an accident! He accidentally collided with me."

"Kissed."

"_Accidentally collided with me._"

"Kissed. But go on."

"And it wasn't bad!" Kanehara had paused. "It was just …"

Urahara found it very difficult to turn away now, so he cautiously slid the door open a crack and pressed himself against the wall to see Kanehara's face, to try and figure out what she was feeling.

"You didn't want it to be an accident?"

He couldn't see Yoruichi's face, but Kanehara's was unsure and slightly embarrassed. Urahara's stomach twisted and he felt a bubble of guilt and apprehension forming, mixed with a feeling that he knew he shouldn't want to feel towards her…

Kanehara groaned again and hid her face in her knees. "I'm so horrible!" she moaned, covering the back of her head with her hands.

Yoruichi nearly laughed. "You're not horrible, Satsuki." The cat assured her.

Urahara wanted to turn around, he wanted to leave, to not hear any more of this conversation, but it was as though he were rooted to the spot, unable to move.

Kanehara rested her chin on her knees and began to scratch Yoruichi behind her ears. Urahara could hear Yoruichi's loud purring.

"You won't tell him, will you?" Kanehara cringed, waiting for the cat's reply.

_Damn it all._ Urahara cursed internally.

"Your secret's safe." Yoruichi purred.

"Thank you." Kanehara looked grateful as she stroked Yoruichi behind her ears. She carefully stood up, stepping over the curled-up cat. "You don't mind, do you?"

Yoruichi looked up curiously as Kanehara pulled open a drawer. "No, of course not." The cat answered, putting her head back down on her paws.

Urahara's heart pounded. _Oh shit… Please move, please move…_ But his limbs remained frozen and he couldn't close his eyes.

Kanehara pulled off her ripped, bloodied and dirty t-shirt and laid it on the dresser, rifling through the open drawer as she searched for a cleaner shirt. Urahara's eyes wouldn't leave her. He saw the five, long and thick scars that ran down her back; they had faded to a pale pink. Her brown brazier was in sharp contrast to her ivory skin. Urahara's heart was pounding in his throat. _If she turns around now… _He almost wished she would, so he would be free to move his limbs again.

Urahara could tell from his little slit in the doorway that her body was lean, and he could see the muscles forming in her arms and back from their fights as she bent over to rummage in the drawer again. He watched, admiring.

Kanehara pulled a long green t-shirt out from within the drawer and slid her arms through it, preparing to pull it over her head when she caught a glimpse of her scars in the reflection of the mirror on the dresser. She cringed and tilted her shoulder to get a better view.

"Yoruichi," she asked quietly, looking down at the black ball; it looked up and stared back, "Why do you think Orihime couldn't heal my back completely?"

Yoruichi leapt easily onto the dresser and settled herself facing the door, looking up at Kanehara. "I don't know, Satsuki, but I don't think Inoue-san would leave you these scars intentionally."

Kanehara bit her lip, frowning slightly and turned around so she could get a full view of her back, still shirtless. Urahara managed to squeeze his eyes shut as she did so, not wanting to look, and listened instead.

"You're probably right… But I can't stop feeling ugly whenever I see them." He could Kanehara laugh humourlessly. "What guy would want me, especially with _these_?"

"Oh you stupid girl, you think that would change a guys mind if he really loves you?"

"I guess, but what would I tell him? A bear mauled me by accident? By accident…" Kanehara paused; "Just like that kiss…" her voice was quieter now, and sad. Urahara let his head rest against the wall, feeling the bubble of guilt swell.

"OUCH!" Kanehara yelped suddenly.

Urahara instinctively opened his eyes to see what had hurt her, realized she was still shirtless, and gritted his teeth and mentally cursed himself while squeezing his eyes shut again.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"For being an idiot girl!"

"You _bit_ me because I think I'm ugly?!"

"Yes."

"Crazy psycho cat- OUCH!"

"Does that one need explaining?"

Urahara heard Kanehara grumbling darkly as she pulled on her shirt, and felt relief that he could open his eyes again. He peered once again through the crack and saw Kanehara nursing her injured hand. Yoruichi's yellow eyes were narrowed in a glare, when they flicked towards him. Urahara could see the flicker of a cat-like grin on her furry face as she looked back towards Kanehara, tying her hair up.

"Satsuki, what do you think makes you so attracted to Urahara-san?" Yoruichi asked innocently enough, hiding her grin successfully.

Urahara blanched, now he was much too interested to leave. _Damn that Yoruichi!_

Kanehara looked surprised and she blushed, looking away. "I just… It's only a crush… I don't…"

"Oh, I'm not going to tell him!" Yoruichi said with her low voice layered with persuasion. "Just a secret between you and me…" Yoruichi drifted on the last word.

"Okay, if it's only you and me." Kanehara sighed and sat next to the dresser, leaning against it. "I don't know, actually…"

"Oh come on, now! There must be _something_…"

_Yoruichi: goddess of persuasion. _Urahara thought wryly.

"Fine, all right then." Kanehara sighed and leaned her head back, staring at the ceiling. "He's incredibly handsome, funny," a small smile began to form on her lips as she listed off the traits.

Urahara smiled slightly and he could feel his cheeks warming.

"Kind, protective… He's a freakishly good swordsman, and his abs are…" Kanehara paused, her cheeks flushing red again. "Well… Continuing on."

His cheeks felt very hot now as he listened to all this, and he had trouble trying not to smile.

"He's always been kind to me, even though I was very rude and mean to him, he's mysterious… I guess that's about it." Kanehara finished, intertwining her fingers and placing her hands on her knees.

"That's it?" Yoruichi asked in disappointment, "You don't want to have sex with him?" Yoruichi frowned, landing softly beside the blushing teenager.

Both Urahara and Kanehara's mouths dropped at the same time, both were terrified. Urahara of the answer and Kanehara of the question.

"S-sex?" Kanehara's face went beet red, "No! No, no, no… It would be amazing if he even liked me _back_, but I don't want to have sex with him! Oh my god! Why would you ask that?!" Kanehara looked horrified.

_It's because _I'm_ here! Damn it, Yoruichi! _Urahara thought furiously, his fists balling at his sides.

"You are more innocent than you appear, Satsuki!" Yoruichi sounded mildly shocked and began cleaning her face. "I thought for sure you would have-"

"Would've thought about him and me doing… Doing _that_?!" Kanehara hissed, glaring furiously at the cat. "What kind of a sick perverted guy _are _you?!"

Yoruichi was about to retort that she wasn't a guy when there was a knock on the door.

"May I come in?" a voice asked from the other side of the door.

"Of course, Kisuke!" Yoruichi called happily, ignoring the death glares that Kanehara was shooting her.

"How long have you been standing there?" Kanehara asked apprehensively, a worried frown on her face as she watched Urahara walk into the room.

"Only a second before I knocked." Urahara lied, trying to appear casual and failing miserably. He knew Kanehara didn't buy the lie, and he quickly shifted his attention to Yoruichi. "Could I talk to you for a moment, Yoruichi-san?"

Yoruichi smirked and flicked her tail as she sauntered over to Urahara. "Yes?"

"In private." Urahara said, clenching his left fist, so that Kanehara wouldn't see. "I'll be back shortly, Satsu-chan." He smiled sweetly at Kanehara, still sitting at the foot of the dresser, and he shut the door behind himself and Yoruichi.

* * *

"What in hell do you think you're doing?!" Urahara asked in silent horror.

His eyes were wide with exasperation as he looked down at the cat sitting placidly at his feet.

"I'm only having some fun, Kisuke," Yoruichi feigned a pout, "Or am I not allowed to do even that?"

Urahara sighed in frustration, crouching down beside the cat and glaring.

"You know well enough that you weren't having _fun_, you were toying with both of our emotions." The manager growled.

Yoruichi sat in silent shock. Never had she seen him act like this, not even in Seireitei. The blonde was almost to the point of seething with anger, she thought he'd be embarrassed and shrug it off…

"Kisuke…"

"Um, could I use the shower?"

The man and the cat started and looked over to Kanehara, who was peering out into the hallway from around the door. Urahara stood up quickly and pulled his hat down.

"Of course, Satsu-chan."

Kanehara kept her head down as she slipped past them into the bathroom, sliding the door closed behind her while holding her shower supplies in a yellow drawstring-bag. Urahara turned and walked back into his room.

"Please, Yoruichi-san, don't do that again."

The cat sat in silence, watching the door slide back, Urahara disappearing from view.

* * *

Monday morning arrived, bringing the first day of autumn along with it, and Kanehara was packing her knapsack with the lunch Tessai had left her in the fridge. She spared a glance at her watch, and hurried out the door, pulling her bag over her shoulder and her black zip-up sweatshirt, and hurried out the door.

Tessai waved as she dashed away, watching her. Kanehara waved over her shoulder, smiling briefly, and disappeared around the corner.

Kanehara arrived at school fifteen minutes early. She tucked her windswept hair behind her ears and took her seat beside Orihime's.

"Kanehara-san!" Orihime squealed, her face lighting up as she saw Kanehara and leaning over to grab her around the shoulders and squeezing tightly.

Kanehara laughed as Orihime let go. "Yeah, I'm back, Orihime."

"You're here early!" she commented, sounding slightly surprised.

"Yep." Kanehara grinned crookedly.

Orihime frowned, knowing the bus arrived at eight-thirty, not at eight.

"You didn't take the bus, did you?" Orihime asked, raising her eyebrows.

Kanehara's grin broadened.

"Nope."

"You _walked_ and got here this early?" The redhead's eyes widened.

"Wrong again! I ran." Kanehara said proudly, flipping open her binder.

Orihime gaped. "But, you're not even out of breath!"

"I have to thank Urahara-san for that," Kanehara smiled, blue hair falling over her right shoulder as she bent down to scribble a doodle in the margin of her paper, "I can run this far and be only the slightest bit exhausted!"

Orihime blinked once, and then smiled. She turned back around in her seat and pulled her own binder out from her bag, then flipped it open, looking around for Tatsuki.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thus ends part 1! I've just started school, and I'm already swamped in homework, so chapter 14 will take a bit longer, but I will definitely get around to writing it!**


	14. Near Death Experience

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, nor will I ever. If you try and report me for copyright infringements after I've said that fourteen times, I will find you and hit you upside the head. :P**

* * *

Urahara sat up in bed and yawned widely, stretching. He rubbed the back of his head and stared across the room to Kanehara's empty futon.

"She went back to school today…" Urahara murmured aloud to himself, feeling slightly guilty he had not woken earlier to say good-bye.

Urahara stood and stretched again, stepping out of the mess of blankets. Something glinted in the morning sun on the dresser, and he walked over to see what it was. The shining object turned out to be a metal picture frame. _Curiosity killed the cat…_ he thought, picking the encased photograph up.

He held the frame in his hands, surveying the happy three standing in the picture. The smallest one Urahara had no trouble in recognizing. Five-year-old Kanehara was grinning from ear to ear, her short blue hair sticking out at weird angles from her pigtails. Her pink dress with matching sandals was unmoving in the frozen time. A most beautiful woman with her long chocolate hair falling gracefully behind one shoulder, who could only be her mother, was bent over and hugging Kanehara from behind. Her vividly green eyes matched Kanehara's without question, along with her smile. The man standing with one hand on Kanehara's mother's shoulder was smiling happily. Her father's blue hair was short and neatly kept. His golden eyes matched the color of his buttons on his brown vest; they glinted in the still sunlight behind square spectacles.

Urahara surveyed her father in the picture with scrutiny. He had built up a grudge against the deceased man for leaving Kanehara alone, thinking him very selfish for taking his own life when Kanehara needed him most. He set the picture back down and stared at it for a moment; he found Kanehara's fathers' eyes a most intriguing gold. Urahara turned from the photograph and stretched widely. Yawning, the manager scratched the back of his head.

After changing, Urahara meandered down the stairs and plunked himself down at the low, square table. Tessai poked his head around the doorway and watched the droopy manager for a moment.

"We have to go and pick up some more inventory from the other side, Kisuke." He said, raising his eyebrows.

Urahara mumbled something incoherently, waved his hand nonchalantly, and rested his head on his arms.

"Today, Kisuke."

Urahara gave a great sigh, and Tessai rolled his eyes behind his glasses.

"Kiiiiiisukeeeeee!"

"Fine." Urahara groaned, resigning.

Tessai shook his head and rolled his eyes again, thinking as he walked back into the kitchen that the manager was incredibly unmotivated at some points.

* * *

"Whadda ya mean we can't go with ya?!" Jinta yelled, glaring daggers at Urahara. 

Urahara sighed, knowing all too well that telling them this _again_ would not go over well, just like last time. He rubbed his hat-clad head.

"You two need to watch the store with Satsu-chan when she returns from school." Urahara repeated, weary of the repetitive argument.

"But, Kisuke-san, we haven't been to the other side in such a long time." Ururu murmured, her large blue eyes watered at the corners.

The blonde rolled his eyes to the ceiling; he could never turn down a crying female.

"Alright, come along. Yoruichi?" he asked, turning to the cat perched on the staircase.

"Yes, Kisuke?" Yoruichi purred.

"Would you tell Satsu-chan where we've gone?"

"Of course." A smile was visible on her furry features.

Urahara clapped his hands together.

"Alright everyone! Let's get going!"

"YEAH!" Jinta roared with pleasure.

Ururu smiled timidly and played with the hem of her pink skirt.

* * *

Kanehara slid the glass paned door sideways and stepped inside. 

"I'm home!" she called, taking her shoes off and laying them neatly inside the door.

When nobody answered, she frowned slightly.

"Hellooooo?" Kanehara tried again, looking around.

The house-store remained as silent as the grave. _Where could they all have disappeared to?_ She wondered.

"Urahara-saaaan? Tessaaaaai?"

There was still no answer. Kanehara stepped up onto the main floor, setting her bag on the floor beside her.

"Ururuuu? Jiiiinta? Yoruichiiiiii?"

Kanehara looked around, puzzled. She took a few more steps when the floor suddenly fell out from beneath her. Kanehara gasped as she fell forward and screamed as gravity took it's fatal hold on her and hurled her towards the ground a mile below.

Yoruichi's ears perked up and she sat bolt upright. She realized with a jolt that she had fallen asleep and neglected to close the trap door behind her after she had taken a hot spring bath. The cat cursed loudly and took off from the sunlit windowsill above the kitchen sink and dashed towards the opening in the floor.

Kanehara's wide and frightened eyes watched the ground draw ever closer. Her screams echoed in the artificial desert as her body fell helplessly to it's certain demise. She squeezed her eyes shut and instinctively curled into the fetal position; her blue hair flew wildly upwards in its ponytail. Kanehara knew she was only a few meters away from death and she braced herself, her heart pounded in her throat. Death never came. The teen felt arms secure themselves around her tightly curled form. _He's saved me!_

"Uraha-!"

She stopped. Kanehara's brilliantly green eyes opened and widened as she looked over at her rescuer. It was not Urahara, she realized with a jolt, but a tan woman with long purple hair who had saved her. The pair landed softly on the ground, the woman set Kanehara down and surveyed her with a bright golden gaze.

"Are you alright, Satsuki?" she asked quickly, frowning.

Kanehara gaped and flushed bright red. She rolled away from the stranger and stood up on shaky legs.

"_Who'reyouandwhyareyouNAKED_?!" Kanehara demanded, horrified, averting her eyes from the naked body of the tanned woman.

"So unthankful…" The lady laughed and stood up, too.

"You haven't seen my true form, have you, Satsuki?" she giggled, her gold eyes glinting.

Kanehara blinked and looked back up to meet the woman's vivid eyes, her cheeks still flaming.

"What?!"

"It's me, Yoruichi." The lady said simply, her purple hair falling over one shoulder

"Yoru-… But, Yoruichi's a _cat_!" Kanehara said, pointing at the woman, "How can you be Yoruichi?!"

"Se-cr-et." Yoruichi winked and grinned.

Kanehara glared, not breaking eye contact.

"Prove you're Yoruichi then!" the teen said sternly, crossing her arms across her chest.

Yoruichi walked closer and put one hand on her hip. Kanehara's cheeks turned crimson as Yoruichi approached.

"You're in love with Kisuke. I promised I wouldn't tell anyone." She said in a stage whisper, her white teeth flashing as she grinned again.

"I'm not in love with him!" Kanehara said indignantly, glaring.

Kanehara sighed as Yoruichi's grin broadened.

"Fine," she muttered, looking away, "Now _please _put on some clothing!"

* * *

Kanehara, now recovered from her latest near-death experience, knelt across the table from Yoruichi, fully clothed. 

"So, they all went to Soul Society illegally to pick up some illegal goods so they could come back here and illegally sell them?" Kanehara raised her eyebrows and blinked.

"Have I got that right?" she asked.

The tanned woman snorted and nodded. She picked up an onigiri that Kanehara had prepared as she had gone to find her outfit, and inhaled it. Kanehara watched incredulously, convinced that Catwoman across the wooden table had not chewed at all.

"Kisuke is… An interesting person." Yoruichi said, selecting what words she thought were best.

"That's for sure." Kanehara snorted, twiddling with the end of her ponytail.

Kanehara thought for a moment as Yoruichi inhaled two more onigiri.

"How do you know Urahara-san?" she asked, curious.

Yoruichi swallowed and smiled slightly.

"He's my only living relative." She said, "Distant, very distant. He's the only family I have now."

The teen's blue eyebrows shot upwards.

"You're related to him?!" Kanehara asked, surprised.

Yoruichi laughed. "Is it that hard to believe?"

"Well…" Kanehara paused, frowning slightly. "If you'd told me that when you were a cat, I might've drop-kicked you out the window."

Yoruichi laughed loudly and swallowed another rice ball.

"These are really good, you know," Catwoman said, resting her head on her hand, "You should cook more often."

"Oh no, I couldn't!" Kanehara declined hastily, "Tessai does the cooking! Besides, he'd get mad if I-"

"Tessai wouldn't get mad at you even if you threw an axe at him." The woman grinned, "You're much too sweet."

Kanehara flushed pink and shut her mouth. Yoruichi chuckled and tossed her an onigiri; Kanehara caught it deftly in her right hand.

"Cook them dinner. I'll help."

* * *

Six o'clock rolled around, the sun had set already. The dying orangey gold still splashed across the horizon of Karakura Town was slowly dripping away to be replaced by the cool navy of night. Steam floated out of the open window above the sink, wisping away in the cold breeze. Kanehara had finished stirring the dumpling soup and poured it into six equal servings, which Yoruichi then set on the table.

"Alright! Everything's ready!" Kanehara grinned, dusting her hands together and untying her apron.

She heard the front door slide vertically and looked over just in time to see Urahara, Tessai, Jinta, and Ururu walk in. Tessai carried three quite large and unmarked boxes into the storage closet across the room from the entrance. Urahara twirled his cane and stepped out of his geta sandals and sniffed the air.

"My, my! What smells so good?"

The blonde looked over towards the table, from which wafted an aroma so delicious, it made his mouth water just from the scent of it.

"Ah! Yoruichi-san! Did you prepare this?" Urahara asked, amazed at the delicious meal sitting on the table.

"No?" Urahara frowned as Yoruichi shook her head, "Did you, Satsu-chan?"Kanehara shuffled her feet and nodded slightly, blushing.

"My, my!" Urahara skipped over to where Kanehara stood, bashful, and hugged her tightly. "It looks so delicious! What a treat to come home to!"

"Um, you're welcome." Kanehara said as her blush deepened, smiling.

Urahara grinned, let go of her, and dropped to his knees on his cushion near Kanehara's.

"Well? Come and sit down everyone!" Urahara clapped his hands together cheerfully.

As they all sat down at the low table, Yoruichi, who sat beside Kanehara, leaned over to her.

"If you ever want to know the direct path to a man's heart, it's through his stomach." She whispered.

Yoruichi grinned broadly as Kanehara shot her a glare.

"Itadakimasu!" Six voices chimed out, and they began.

* * *

Kanehara snuggled under the forest green comforter of her bed and closed her eyes. From across the darkened room she could hear Urahara shifting in his own bed. _Why does he keep changing moods so much?_ She couldn't help but ponder as she recalled the past few days. _He had been serious, and today when I came home…_ After _I had nearly died… He was so… Happy._ She frowned; eyes still closed and shook her head mentally. _Just go to sleep, Satsuki, everybody knows Urahara's a bit kooky. _Kanehara giggled silently and went to sleep.

* * *

**Author's Note: I am so, so, so sorry! This chapter was so short, and you've all been waiting for so long! I can't apologize enough. School's been harder than I thought, and I'm doing tons of shifts at work. I kept kicking myself to finish this chapter, and now it's a bad ending. Sorry everyone! I'll get down to writing the next chapter right away!**


	15. Snowflakes are Falling

**Disclaimer: You know it!**

* * *

Autumn faded into winter, bringing with it endless battles of the dead. Snow had fallen all day, coating everything it touched in a shimmery white fleece. Ichigo ran through a deserted street, panting. His path was dimly lit by streetlamps that flashed by him as he dashed over the snow, leaving shallow footprints behind him.

"Kuso!" he swore, his breath coming out in white billows over his shoulder.

His Shinigami robes pulled against his legs as the wind whipped them backwards. Ichigo leapt and soared through the frigid, snow-filled night air and landed on a rooftop, and didn't waste any time before he leapt to another rooftop five houses away.  
The roar of the hideous creature he was chasing was louder than it had been a moment ago, and Ichigo knew he was closing in on it.

"Ichigo!"

The strawberry's head whipped around to see Rukia keeping up with him, her Shinigami robes fluttering in her wake.

"You didn't need to come!" Ichigo yelled over his shoulder, his focus back on leaping to another rooftop.

"This Hollow is stronger than any we have faced this week!" Rukia grinned as she jumped again, "You need me to help finish him off!"

Ichigo's growl of defiance was lost in the howling wind that whipped past their faces. The snow had thinned, and the tiny flakes fell, barely obscuring their vision as they closed in on the national park just outside Karakura town. The pair heard a scream that didn't belong, and they landed in the snow with soft thuds to stare, horrified at the spirit of a young boy, cornered by the Hollow against a chain link fence.

"Help! Somebody help me! Please!"

The boy's terrified, pleading screams echoed around the field. The Hollow bore down upon him, grinning maliciously; it's painted white mask glittering in the twilight. The boy screamed again, tears pouring down his pale cheeks.  
Ichigo took off towards the Hollow, ignoring Rukia's hollered warnings to wait, drawing Zangetsu from his back. The bandages fluttered away, revealing the cold steel of his sword. The Hollow turned around, sensing Ichigo's reiatsu for the first time since he encountered him.

"ICHIGO, NO!"

Ichigo swung, the boy's screams fueling his anger, aiming for the head. He roared with the effort of the force with which he swung. The Hollow's grin broadened and it opened its mouth wide, displaying two sets of huge teeth. A green, steaming goo shot from within the depths of the creature and hit Ichigo with enough force to knock the breath out of him.  
The redhead hit the ground, gasping, and struggled against the hot green goo that was solidifying at an incredible speed. He heard the Hollow's bloodthirsty roar, the blonde boy wailed shrilly again.

"NO!"

Ichigo tried with all his might to free himself from the globule-like mass that pinned his body down, but his attempts were in vain.  
Rukia leapt, unsheathing her zanpakto, and swung at the Hollow like Ichigo had. She screamed and landed hard on the ground not far from where Ichigo lay trapped. The Hollow lowered its massive tail and bent low over the blonde child. The child's panic-stricken screams could've been heard for miles around as his last breath was taken from him.

Ichigo writhed against the solid green bond that held fast, his yells of fury overridden by the Hollow's shrieks of triumph. Rukia managed to gain her stance again and dashed towards the Hollow, her sword drawn, and slashed as it was distracted.

* * *

"You _WHAT_?!" 

Yoruichi rubbed the back of her head and sweatdropped.

"I told you: I kinda left the trap door open and she… Fell in…" Yoruichi shrugged, cringing as Urahara's face flushed beet red.

"She nearly _died_, Yoruichi! What compelled you to not shut the door?! Why didn't you think of that?!", Urahara spat furiously.

"Well, I-", Yoruichi stopped as Urahara cut her off again.

He growled in frustration and clutched his fan tightly in his left hand and running his right over his hat. The manager paced in a small, tight circle, his teeth clenched. Yoruichi watched this worriedly, wondering if he would try and hurt her or not.

"Kisuke…", Yoruichi began carefully, pausing to gage his reaction, "She's alright. I caught her just before she landed."

Urahara was silent. Yoruichi couldn't read his face as his back was to her. He sighed, his shoulders moving a bit as he did. He turned to face her; his face was a perfectly unemotional mask.

"I know you did," he began slowly, "Thank you. I owe you."

Yoruichi raised a puzzled eyebrow. "What for?"

"For protecting her when I wasn't here." Urahara said quietly.

His half-shadowed face was unreadable still. The corners of Yoruichi's mouth twitched upwards as she barely concealed a smile.

"No problem," she replied, her yellow eyes glittering.

* * *

Kanehara drummed her fingers impatiently on the edge of her desk, staring out the large classroom window to the softly falling flakes outside. She knew something was bothering Ichigo, and he wouldn't tell her what it was. Kanehara narrowed her eyes, recalling his casual snub, and began tapping her foot in time with the drumming of her fingers. She glanced sideways at Orihime. The shy redhead was twiddling her thumbs, her eyebrows bent in concern. Kanehara sighed quietly. Ichigo's silence and reluctance to share was getting to all of them. 

The blue-haired girl's mind had just begun to wander to the snow piling up on the windowsill when the bell rang to signal the end of school. School was out for the weekend. _Finally._  
She stood up and slipped her binder into her shoulder bag and pushed her chair underneath her desk.

"Orihime," Kanehara started, catching up to her as Orihime had begun to leave, "Ichigo hasn't said anything to you yet?"

Orihime bit her lip and shook her head.

"Nothing, Kanehara-san." She said quietly, her gray eyes sad and confused.

They both looked up to see someone approaching them.

"Rukia, do you know-" Kanehara was cut off as Rukia raised her finger to her lips.

"Ichigo and I were chasing a Hollow… And it didn't go so well." Rukia murmured, her raven hair shadowing her face slightly.

"It found the soul of a young boy and devoured him in front of us after we had been momentarily detained," she added, "He's been taking it very badly."

Kanehara and Orihime looked at each other in surprise. Neither had expected this answer.

"That's horrible…" Kanehara whispered, a bubble of guilt swelling in her chest.

"The Hollow escaped. He managed to get away before I had a chance to finish him off. I think Ichigo wants revenge." Rukia said solemnly as she stared down at the floor.

* * *

"I'm back!" 

Kanehara slipped out of her shoes easily enough and looked around as Tessai poked his head out from around the corner.

"Welcome back Kanehara-san," Tessai nodded, "The manager would like you to see him. He has something to talk to you about."

Kanehara raised her eyebrows in mild surprise.

"Do you know what about?" she asked, crossing the wooden floor and stepping up to the main floor.

Tessai shook his head solemnly and bowed slightly.

"He's in his room, waiting." He said and turned to walk back into the kitchen.

The sixteen-year old stepped through the opening of the doorway and looked towards the tall figure standing in front of the window. Urahara looked out through the glass at the gently drifting snow and turned around as he heard Kanehara enter.

"Ah, Satsu-chan!" he beamed, striding towards her, "Welcome back."

Kanehara raised a blue eyebrow, "What's this all about?"

Urahara chuckled, grinning, "It's nothing to worry about, I've only thought of the terms under which you can stay here."

She sighed and hung her head, "I can't pay you; I don't have the money."

"Not _those_ types of terms, Satsu-chan!" Urahara hid his face behind the white fan he whipped out of his pocket, "These are _much_ more agreeable to you."

Now Kanehara was suspicious. She raised her eyebrows cautiously.

"And those would be…?"

"You can stay here, free housing and food, if you run a few errands from time to time and begin working in the store." Urahara said; his blue-gray eyes grinned from behind the white fan.

Her eyebrows shot up.

"That's it?" she asked in surprise as Urahara nodded, "Sure, you didn't even have to ask for me to say 'yes'."

Urahara snapped the fan closed and tapped it on Kanehara's right shoulder.

"Excellent!" he said happily, "Now, be a good girl and do your homework and then come down for dinner."

Kanehara narrowed her brilliant green eyes, and Urahara laughed.

A few hours passed and Kanehara was finally done her homework. She had changed out of her uniform and had shrugged into an oversized purple sweater and a pair of jeans. She was just tying her hair up into a messy bun when she heard her name being called.

"Kanehara-san! Dinner is ready!"

"Coming, Tessai!" Kanehara called back, letting go of her hair and sliding open the door.

* * *

Urahara sat up and yawned as he awoke the next morning, pulling back the covers of his bed. A musty gray light filtered in through the curtains, and he walked across the room to see if it was raining again. Pulling back the curtains, Urahara blinked against the sudden burst of light. White puffs of cotton fell from the sky, piling higher against the glass as they settled on the windowsill. Urahara's breath left a misty fug on the window and he wiped it away with his sleeve. 

"It's still snowing, Satsu-ch-"

He looked over, only to find that Kanehara's bed was made and very vacant. Urahara frowned in confusion, wondering where she was, and then glanced out the window again. He could see her rolling a large ball of snow around in the lot in front of the store, and Urahara smiled.

Kanehara tucked her hair behind her ear with her hand and continued to roll the base of the snowman around the drive, finally stopping since it had grown to the height of her. Smiling triumphantly, Kanehara set to work on the next ball. She picked up a glob of snow, packing it together between her sleeves and dropping it with an inaudible plunk back onto the snow-covered ground. Flipping it a few times to get it going, Kanehara proceeded to nudging the slowly growing ball with her boot-clad feet so she wouldn't have to use her bare hands.

A few minutes later, Kanehara lifted the slightly smaller ball onto the base and smooshed the empty spaces with extra snow, packing it tightly so it wouldn't roll off.

"It's beautiful, Satsu-chan."

Kanehara whipped around to see Urahara standing a few feet from her, his sandals lifting him just enough to walk above snow-level. He strode over to her, staring at the headless snowman with a crooked grin on his face.

"Aren't you cold, Urahara-san?" Kanehara frowned.

"Of course not!" Urahara grinned, tearing his eyes away from the snowman to look down at her.

He avoided looking at her until he had to, because the snow, he wasn't quite sure why it happened, made her more beautiful than he had seen her recently. Her cheeks and the end of her nose were tinted pink; they were vivid against her porcelain ivory skin. Flakes of snow fell and stayed on the top of her head, her shoulders, and even a few caught and held on to the end of her eyelashes. Kanehara smiled and raised a blue eyebrow.

"What? Is there something on my face?" she joked, grinning.

Urahara laughed quietly. Their breath came out in faint, billowing clouds that floated away on a breeze they didn't feel.

"No, it's nothing," He said, poking at a small pile of snow that rose higher than the others with the end of his cane.

_She's sixteen! You pervert! _His mind scolded him. _I know, I know… But I can't… I… _ His feeble response made him sigh out loud.

"Are you sure? Because it doesn't look like nothing," Kanehara raised an eyebrow, grinning, and blew on her hands to warm them.

"I'm sure," Urahara assured her, and took her hands in his, holding his cane in the crook of his arm.

Kanehara's eyes widened and she blushed profusely. Urahara, only realizing what he had just done, paled.

"I just wanted to warm your hands up faster," he explained, pulling it off the top of his head, "Unless you wanted me to stick them somewhere else."

He had figured a way to joke himself around another uncomfortable situation once again. _Kudos to me,_ He thought in relief. _You idiot, now look what you've done to her!_

Kanehara's cheeks were bright red, a complete contrast to her ivory complexion.

"Um, no, thanks, Urahara-san, but… Um…" She stumbled over her words and looked down at the snow to try and hide her embarrassment.

She bit her lip and quickly pulled her hands away, then looked up at him.

"Thank you, my hands are warm again," She said, offering a small smile.

Urahara nodded quickly, smiling faintly back and turned so he was facing the shop. Kanehara could feel the awkwardness, so she decided to busy herself patting the snow into place on the behemoth of frozen ice. Urahara looked over his shoulder at her, wondering if his reflexes would get him into trouble, and failed to see the softball-sized hunk of snow whizzing his way.

"Kuso!"

Kanehara jumped and spun around, startled by Urahara's sudden vulgar outburst.

"Oof!" Kanehara squealed, slipping on a patch of ice.

Her feet flew out from under her and she landed hard on her back, knocking the wind out of herself. She gasped for air and rolled over onto her side.

"Satsuki!" Urahara said quickly, and bent down beside her, his eyes glinting coldly.

Kanehara blinked and took another deep breath.

"You… Said my name," she uttered in slight disbelief.

Urahara's eyes widened slightly, he had not meant for that to slip out. Kanehara frowned in mild confusion, wondering why he was taking her comment so weirdly. She took the hand he offered her to help her up, and then was distracted by the large welt forming on the right side of Urahara's face.

"Oh my god! Who the hell did that?!" Kanehara sat bolt upright, letting go of his hand.

She was about to curse again when another whizzing ice-ball exploded as it hit the ground, a foot from where Kanehara sat on the ground.

"SHIT!" she swore loudly and rolled over, scrambling to her feet.

Urahara stood up quickly and looked up towards the rooftop, from which the snowballs seemed to be coming from, and saw a shock of brilliantly red hair disappear behind the ledge.

"Jinta!" Urahara raised his voice; an angry note could be heard. No reply. "_Jinta!_"

"What?!" the boy called from the rooftop. Jinta peered down, glaring, "You've ruined my fun!"

"Come down here," Urahara said, lowering his voice, "And apologize to Satsu-chan."

They could hear Jinta cursing under his breath as he tossed one final snowball over his shoulder and grudgingly walked back towards a lower roof.

Kanehara looked over to Urahara with wide eyes, "But you're hurt more than I am! He should apologize to you!"

Urahara laughed, his breath came out in white puffs, "I'll be fine. Really." He added in remark to Kanehara's skeptical look that she shot him.

"But-" she started to say, but stopped as the front sliding door flew sideways.

Out marched a red-faced and very cold Jinta, glaring at the both of them. He came to a stop, his boots crunching in the snow underfoot, and muttered something under his breath.

"Sorry, didn't hear that one," Urahara hid a smile.

"I'm sorry," Jinta repeated in the same tone, slightly louder this time.

"Thank you, Jinta. You can go back inside now," The manager dismissed the boy, who immediately fled back into the shop, slamming the door behind him.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, Satsu-chan," Urahara apologized, glancing over to her out of the corner of his eye, "Let's go inside and have some hot chocolate, ne?"

Kanehara blinked, and nodded. She felt as though she had missed something.

* * *

**Author's Note: Ahhhh! There's chapter 15! I meant to continue it, but I know you all kinda wanted to read it, so I left it at a good spot!**


	16. Nightmare Before Christmas

**Disclaimer: … Oh good grief…**

* * *

"One day 'til Christmas!" Kanehara chirped, skipping the last few stairs and landing on the wooden floor below; the red tinsel around her neck crinkled softly.

She skipped across the room to where Jinta was sitting cross-legged at the table and pulled at his ears playfully.

"One day 'til Christmas!" she chirred again happily,

Jinta swatted angrily over his head, trying to hit the overly cheerful teenager. She laughed and danced out of reach and skipped into the kitchen and tossed the red tinsel around Tessai's neck, wrapping it around like a scarf. Tessai stood at the stove, still and unmoving and very confused. Kanehara bounded up the stairs to find Urahara.

"Urahara-san!" she called as she skidded to their doorway,

Urahara flopped quickly onto whatever he had been working on, hiding it from view.

"Ah, Satsu-chan!" he called from his odd belly-flopped position, "Would you mind giving me a little heads up before you come in next time?"

Kanehara flushed pink and stepped back out of the room, sliding the door closed, "I'm sorry, Urahara-san! Can I come in now?" she asked, quite embarrassed that she had almost seen someone's Christmas present.

"Yes, it's alright now!" came the reply through the door.

Kanehara slid the door back open and stepped inside. Urahara had managed to find a place to stow the gift and was sitting on the floor as she walked towards him.

"I could hear you singing," Urahara chuckled as she plunked herself down beside him, "You're looking forward to Christmas?"

"Of course!" Kanehara grinned broadly from ear to ear, "It's my favorite holiday, next to Hallowe'en and my birthday!"

"Your birthday is on a holiday? Which one?" Urahara raised a quizzical eyebrow from beneath his hat.

"I'm not going to tell you, because you, Tessai, Jinta and Ururu will gang up and have a party and-" she took a deep breath as she had said everything in her last one, "-And get me presents," she finished, quite lamely.

Urahara blinked confusedly, "But why wouldn't you want presents?"

"'Cause! I don't want any," Kanehara repeated, sticking her tongue out.

Urahara grinned devilishly, "You shouldn't do that unless you mean to use it," he said slyly.

Kanehara's eyes widened, "PERVERT!"

She shoved him over and crossed her arms, glaring down at him. Urahara laughed and sat up again. Kanehara shoved him back down and stood up.

"I'm going to go out to get some groceries," she said, smiling as he sat up again, "Did you want anything that wasn't on the list?"

The manager shook his head, "No, but thank you for asking," he said, stroking his gruff chin and smiled.

Kanehara turned and began to walk down the stairs around the corner, when Urahara called after her.

"It's snowing, be careful!"

The teenager grinned and hurried towards the front door.

* * *

Urahara walked around the storage room and rubbed the back of his head.

"My, my, we seem to be running low…" he murmured, "Time for a quick trip to the other side…"

* * *

_Ring… Ring… Ring…_

"Hello?"

"Ah! Freeloader-san!" Urahara greeted the person on the other end of the phone cheerfully, "Would you care to spend Christmas Eve with us? Tessai and I have to leave, and-", Urahara held the phone away from his ear and cringed slightly.

"YOU CALL ME AT THIS HOUR WANTING TO KNOW IF I CAN HOUSE SIT FOR YOU TONIGHT?!"

"Well, you see-", Urahara was cut off again

"KUSO! I WAS SLEEPING, OLD MAN!"

"If you could bring those three with you too, that would be-", the other person cut him off again.

"BAKA YAROU! KUSO! TEME-"

The man hung up forcefully, cutting off his own stream of loudly vulgar words. Urahara placed the phone back into the cradle and stood up, brushing out his kosode.

"Tessai! We can leave now!" he called cheerfully, heading towards the door.

* * *

"That'll be fifteen hundred yen, please,"

Kanehara shifted through her shoulder bag, searching for her wallet. She extracted the proper change for the groceries and handed it to the cashier's outstretched hand.

"Thank you, have a good Christmas."

"You too!" Kanehara said over her shoulder as she carried the two oversized brown bags back towards the sidewalk.

Snow lay still thick, piling up in the center of the street and against the sidewalk. She strolled down a white-packed pathway, careful not to slip.

"It's been two hours," she murmured to herself, the chill of the winter night air nipping at her cheeks, "I hope everything's still alright."

The streetlamps overhead lit patches of the snowy ground, making them sparkle in the nightly blackness. Small cotton puffs of snowflakes were again falling from the sky, illuminated in the lamplight. Kanehara was glad she had worn her scarf and new gloves, courtesy of Urahara, because tonight she needed them. After about an hour's walk through the wintry night, Kanehara rounded the corner towards the Urahara Shoten and was nearly brought to her knees. An overwhelming pressure forced her downwards and she gasped for air. The brown bags fell to the ground, their contents spilling out into the powdery snow.

She fought to raise her head and looked forward towards the Urahara Shoten, and what she saw made her heart skip a beat. The structure lay in ruins, dust hadn't even settled around it yet. Kanehara's heart began to race and her eyes widened in horror.

"No… No… No…" she muttered to herself over and over, "No… No… No!"

She had forgotten about the pressure forcing her downwards and she began to run, fearing the worst.

_They can't be…! They can't be…! Why?! Why?! I should've been there; I should've been there… I shouldn't have left… Oh god… They can't be…_

Kanehara's legs pounded beneath her, propelling her forward to the scene of utter devastation.

_Please, please, please…_ She prayed as she approached the ruins, skidding to a halt and falling to her knees. She began to pull parts of rubble apart, hoping beyond hope that they weren't… _NO!_She forced herself to not think about the alternative.

"URURU!" she screamed, "JINTA! TESSAI!"

No reply.

"KISUKE!" she called again, tears trying to force their way out of her eyes.

"HELP, SOMEONE! PLEASE!"

Her hand had caught on a nail, tearing her skin, but she hardly noticed. She was on her feet, pulling at fallen beams, trying to loosen them.

"SOMEONE!" she screamed again.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

A pair of arms grabbed her forcefully around the middle, pulling her back from the rubble. She struggled and kicked against the arms, trying to free herself.

"We're fine! We're fine! Please! STOP!"

Kanehara stopped struggling and spun around quickly and found herself looking into the blue-gray eyes of Urahara. She dropped to her knees and began to sob. Her shoulders shook, her voice broken and hoarse. A pair of warm arms wrapped around her shoulders comfortingly and pulled her close. Kanehara didn't resist and flung her arms around his middle, clutching.

"I th-thought… You w-w-were all…" she choked, tears blurring her vision.

"Shhh… Shhh… It's all right… Don't cry," Urahara whispered, stroking her hair.

Kanehara's body shuddered with another sob. She clutched Urahara tighter to her, not wanting to let him go. She shut her eyes tightly; tears spilled out and fell heavily down her cheeks.

"Manager…?" She recognized Tessai's deep rumble.

"No, I'll stay with her." Urahara replied quietly, still stroking her hair.

"As you wish. I'll begin the clean up."

She felt Urahara nod, and he immediately returned his attention to her.

"Shhh, quiet down. Go to sleep." He murmured, looking down at her.

"N-no!" Kanehara looked up at him, "Because you'll go away if I do!"

Urahara hugged her closer, "I promise I won't leave you, now go to sleep."

The last thing Kanehara could recall before slipping into a deep unconsciousness was the throbbing pain in her left hand and Urahara's fingers running through her hair.

* * *

She awoke the next morning, tucked under her comforter and in her pajamas. Kanehara sat bolt upright and looked around quickly. Everything had been restored to such a state, Kanehara wondered if she had had a terrible nightmare. The teen glanced down at her left hand. It was bandaged and still sore, which meant that it had not been a dream.

Kanehara slid from beneath her blankets and stood up quietly. She tiptoed over to the window and pulled back the curtain a tiny bit. The outside world was still covered in the fleecy blanket of snow. She sighed, leaving a cloudy fug on the window glass as Kanehara let go of the curtain. She heard Urahara roll over in his sleep, his blankets crinkling mutely, and looked over.

She didn't know what came over her as she walked across the forest green rug, or why she knelt down at his side. She didn't even know what made her bend over Urahara's slumbering form and gaze down at him with a strange feeling brewing in the pit of her stomach.

_I thought they had all been injured, or worse… _she thought, brushing a lock of white blond hair out of his face, _I feared most about him… _Kanehara moved closer to him, her blue hair fell gently over her shoulder,_ if he had died… I never would have been able to tell him that…_

"I love him," she whispered, recognizing the strange feeling.

Urahara blinked groggily and jolted as he saw her bending over him. He sat up quickly and Kanehara moved back quickly, blushing furiously.

"I… Um…" Kanehara tried to search for words to explain her strange position, but failed miserably, "I… Was just…"

"Care to explain why you were that close, Satsu-chan?" Urahara cocked an eyebrow, hiding a grin.

Kanehara's blush darkened and she hid her face, "I…"

Urahara smiled gently and took her left hand in his right, "I'm sorry you had such a fright last night, I never meant for that to happen."

Kanehara nodded, her face still hidden, "I know, Urahara-san… I just was so scared… So scared that you had all…" she choked on the last word.

The manager felt the swelling of a bubble of emotion forming, and he fought against his instinct to embrace her.

"Listen, it's Christmas, Satsu-chan, let's go downstairs and see everyone, ne?" He said, bending low and tilting his head to try and peer into her eyes.

She looked up to meet his gaze, "But I want to know why it all happened. Why was the store destroyed? Why was there so much spirit energy? Why…" she stopped on the last question.

Urahara sighed and let go of her hand, "I don't want to tell you, you don't need to know."

"Please, Urahara-san? Please?" Kanehara urged, "I need to know! I thought you were all dead! Please! I love you!"

She froze._Oh shit._

Urahara froze as well, his gaze fixed to hers.

Kanehara got to her feet hurriedly and walked back to her mattress and sat down, facing the wall.

"I'm sorry, Urahara-san, that wasn't… I didn't…"

"Mean it?" he asked quietly.

Kanehara shook her head; "No!" she said quickly, "I just…" she sighed, "Didn't mean to say it out loud. I'm sorry."

Urahara knelt down behind her and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"We could never be together, I'm too old," he murmured.

"There's only a few years difference! Besides, I'm almost eighteen-" Kanehara was cut off by Urahara's low chuckles.

"I wish it were only a few years…" he muttered, more to himself than to her, then he sighed, "Satsu-chan, we can't… I'm too old…"

"Then why are you holding me?"

Urahara was about to reply, and found he didn't have anything to say. Kanehara looked around, a pleading in her brightly green eyes.

"Please, Urahara-san," she pleaded, a soft pain in her voice, "Please, I don't care how old you are-"

"If you knew my age, you wouldn't be saying this."

"I don't care! Please, it wouldn't have to be anything serious!" she pleaded again, shifting herself around to face him, "Last night, I thought I'd lost you and everyone else. I thought I would never get to tell you. Last night, Christmas Eve," she paused for a moment, "Was my birthday. The thought that you might have died on my birthday, it nearly killed me there."

Urahara's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to speak, but Kanehara cut him off again.

"Please, Urahara-san, I love you," she said again, cupping his ruggedly handsome face in her hands, "Please," she paused, "Kisuke, I love you."

"Satsu…" he bit his lip and closed his eyes.

He pulled her close to him and hugged her tightly. She returned the embrace, hoping it wouldn't be their last. Urahara fought with himself for a moment. _Oh, fuck it. _He thought finally.

In one fluid motion, he pulled back and leaned forward again, pushing his lips against Kanehara's. She closed her eyes, surprised and overwhelmed. _Finally,_ she thought, and wrapped her arms around his neck. The kiss felt like it lasted forever, and Urahara pulled away, holding Kanehara tightly again.

"Satsuki," he murmured, nuzzling her hair, "This won't be anything serious,"

"I know," Kanehara murmured back.

"It might not last,"

"I know,"

Urahara smiled and kissed her forehead, "And you know we're going to hell in a hand basket for doing this?"

"At least it's a comfortable one," Kanehara laughed softly.

He grinned and pressed his lips against hers again.

* * *

The five of them sat in the living room next to a small, brightly lit Christmas tree. Jinta's rear stuck out of the bottom of the tree as he rummaged through the gifts looking for one of his own. Kanehara was sitting next to Urahara, his arm around her shoulder (this warranted smug looks from Tessai).

"Before we start – Jinta come out of there – I want Satsuki to know what happened, so if everyone could wait a moment, I'm sure she would appreciate it," Urahara said, finishing with a glance down towards Kanehara's blue head.

"Tessai and I had left to pick up a few more supplies for the shop from the other side," Urahara began, "I asked an… Old friend to watch the three of you,"

"Who?" Kanehara queried, blinking bright green eyes up at him.

"Abarai Renji-san, vice captain of the sixth squad in Seireitei,"

"AND HE_BABYSAT_FOR YOU?!"

"Of course," the manager grinned slyly, "He owes me,"

"Continuing on," Tessai rumbled,

"What? Oh, yes. You know about Hollows, ne?" Urahara said, Kanehara nodding, "Well, there are a few types of Hollows, of those are three main ones: Gillians, Ajuukara and Vasto Lorde," he explained, "Vasto Lorde are the highest ranking of Hollow, the most powerful, and they can take on a human appearance. All Hollows reside in Heuco Mundo.

"A few months ago, not that long before we met, there was… Some problems in Seireitei," Urahara said, Kanehara knew he was editing his speech, "Three captains of the Gotei thirteen were corrupted and left to Heuco Mundo with the help of Gillian. Their new leader, former captain of the fifth squad, Aizen Souske, made some 'new friends'. They are the Arrancar. An Arrancar is a hollow that has removed its mask and gained Shinigami powers," he explained, snapping his fan open and closed, "One Arrancar came here last night, demanding that I help him understand an invention that I created.

"Of course, even though Renji said to the Arrancar that I wasn't in, the Arrancar wouldn't listen to him and proceeded to put the house in ruins."

Jinta snorted, "That's putting it lightly."

Kanehara frowned slightly, "What invention? You invent?"

"It's called the Hougyoku, and I'd rather not go into detail about what it does at the moment," Urahara paused, "That's when you showed up."

Kanehara was silent, trying to soak up everything at once, "So… This Aizen guy wants to know how to use the Hogee-goo-koo thing, but he needs you to help?"

"Hougyoku, and yes, I believe he does. I also think that the Arrancar that attacked us last night was a rogue."

"Right."

All four of them were watching Kanehara as she sat, staring at the wooden floor, completely silent.

"Well!" she said at last, making Ururu jump slightly, "It's Christmas! Let's open presents, ne?"

Urahara blinked and grinned. _She's beginning to talk like me, too…_

Jinta immediately resumed his occupation of digging through the small accumulation of gifts under the tree and Ururu beamed as a present addressed to her landed in front of her.

* * *

"Urahara-san," Kanehara began, stirring the udon over the stove, "Where's Yoruichi-san? I haven't seen her around lately, has she gone off somewhere?"

Urahara leaned around the corner of the doorway to look back at her, "Yes, she does this quite often nowadays. I assume she's off roaming around in Soul Society," he shrugged, flashed her a crooked grin, and disappeared back around the corner.

Kanehara shrugged and hummed 'What Child is This?' quietly, a faint blush still on her cheeks. She has sporting a light blue kosode that Urahara had found somewhere, in her size as well! She rolled up the sleeves again and went back to preparing the sashimi and sushi.

Tessai walked over, Kanehara could hear the light thudding of his massive feet crossing the floor, "Kanehara-san, I should tell you that you will have to set four more places at the table tonight,"

Kanehara looked over, confused, "What for?" she queried with her eyebrows raised.

"Well, Abarai-san is still here, and three others. I think you will all get on well enough," Tessai said, adjusting his glasses; they glinted in the kitchen light.

"That vice captain's here?! But, where?!"

"That I am not sure of."

Kanehara sighed, "Thank you, Tessai, I'll make up four more places."

* * *

Ichigo rubbed the back of his head as he meandered onto the balcony outside his window. It was dark outside and he shivered slightly. From within drifted out the boisterous laughter of his father and two sisters that were downstairs in the sitting room. He stared out at the falling snow that danced as a chilly winter breeze swept through Karakura Town.

"Ichigo," came a soft voice from above him.

Ichigo looked up quickly to see Rukia crouching in full Shinigami garb on the roof above staring down at him. She leaned over and caught a large cotton puff on her finger and observed it.

"There seems to be an awful ruckus about this holiday," she mused, looking back down at him, "What is this… Christmas? What's it all about?"

Ichigo grinned, hoisting himself onto the roof beside her and crouched down, "It's a religious holiday for some, but here in Japan it lost it's religious meaning," he explained quietly, "So now it's a holiday where family and friends get together and exchange presents."

Rukia blinked, then stared across the snowy world thoughtfully, "Exchange presents?"

Ichigo nodded, knowing she wasn't really talking to him, then reached inside his sweatpants pocket and pulled out a little box.

"Here," he said, offering the red wrapped box with green ribbon, "It's for you."

Rukia blinked and flushed a watery pink, "For me? Why?"

"Just take it."

She took the small box from Ichigo's outstretched hand and undid the tiny bow. She tore the wrapping paper and removed the lid. Rukia's violet eyes widened as she pulled out a thin, golden chain with a tiny, golden bunny head on the end.

"Ichigo!" She exclaimed, examining the necklace.

"Don't say thanks," he mumbled, trying to be tough and masculine, "I saw it and thought it would be a nice gift for-"

He was cut off by Rukia flinging her arms around him and tackling him to the roof.

"Hey, hey!"

"Ichigo! I love it," Rukia beamed, letting go of him.

She undid the clasp and reattached it. It hung delicately around her neck and sparkled in the twilight. Rukia beamed.

"Thank you!"

* * *

"WHOA!" Kanehara nearly dropped the dish she was carrying to the table, "What the hell is wrong with your hair?!"

She had just spotted a young man with vibrantly crimson hair tied up in a ponytail sitting at the table crossly. He looked up at her, glaring, obviously annoyed.

"What the hell are you talking about?" he snarled, "Your hair is _blue_, dorkface!"

"Yeah, well what about those messed up eyebrows of yours?! They look like a unibrow gone bad!" Kanehara retaliated, glaring at the man.

"Satsu-chan! Such language!" Urahara tutted, shaking a finger while wearing a smug grin, "The person you are insulting is Abarai Renji, one of our guests."

Kanehara froze. _Oh shit._

Jinta laughed loudly, "You don't need to be afraid of this freeloader!" he pronounced, firmly whacking Renji between the eyes while grinning menacingly, "See?"

Renji retaliated with a swift blow to the back of Jinta's head.

Kanehara blinked, shook her head, and walked over to the table to set down the dish of fish she had been holding.

"Satsu-chan," Urahara beckoned for her attention, "Our other three visitors have decided to show themselves!"

Kanehara, having already had enough excitement for one night, turned around slowly to rest her eyes upon three most absurdly dressed people she had ever seen.

"Hey! Hey!" The small blonde girl chirred happily, "I'm Ririn, who're you?"

The teenager laughed, she couldn't help it, "I'm Satsuki," she grinned,

"Satsuki-chan," an older man addressed her with a kind smile, "My name is Cloud," he said, tipping his top hat to her.

"Pleased to meet you, Cloud," Kanehara bowed slightly.

The third man, wearing a dark blue-grey jumpsuit with a strange tunic, remained silent and only nodded once to Kanehara.

"That's Nova!" Ririn chirped up at once, tugging at his hand, "He doesn't talk much to anyone," she pouted as Nova jerked his hand away.

"Dinner is ready!" Tessai announced, clearing his throat.

* * *

Urahara slid the door shut behind them a few hours later and slowly turned around to face Kanehara.

"Merry Christmas," he said.

There was a moment of silence shared between them and then both simultaneously burst into laughter.

Kanehara smiled and rolled her eyes, turning to walk to her futon in the far corner of the room. But it had vanished. She turned back towards Urahara and spotted the futon next to his, blankets and all. Kanehara eyes narrowed into suspicious emerald green slits as she tilted her head to look back at Urahara.

"Urahara-san…" she said slowly.

"You don't have to use the formalities when we're alone, Satsu-chan," Urahara said, with a smug grin on his face.

Kanehara rolled her eyes again, "Why is my bed there?" she queried, pointing to her futon, already knowing the answer.

Urahara's grin just broadened. Kanehara sighed and moved past him sliding the door open and stepping aside.

"Out," she said firmly, watching him.

The manager blinked, "Wha-?"

"I have to get changed!"

"Oh!" he said, cluing in, "Wait, why can't I-?"

"PERVERT!"

"Okay, okay!"

Kanehara shut the door loudly behind him and walked back across the room to her dresser and undid her kosode and pulled off her t-shirt, sliding open a drawer and pulling out a tank top with a pair of some-what matching blue pyjama pants.

In the reflection of the mirror she saw the door slide open half an inch silently. She stopped and thought for a moment, _Should I…? _Looking back at the reflection, _Nah._ She continued with removing her pants and bra, and slid quickly into her pajamas, trying not to give him _too_ much satisfaction with his "oh-my-goodness-I'm-so-sly" move.

Five minutes later both had changed and climbed into bed. They lay there in the darkness, watchful and quiet.

"Satsuki," Urahara murmured, "You knew I was looking."

"Yes,"

"You let me look?" he raised a white blonde eyebrow.

Kanehara smiled and hid her head beneath the covers.

"And you call _me_the pervert…" Urahara chuckled, "By the way," he added, pulling her covers back, "Happy birthday, I didn't get to tell you before."

She grinned and snuggled closer to his bare chest, "Thank you, Kisuke," she murmured sleepily, "Good night."

He smiled, "Good night, Satsuki," he said quietly, slipping his arm around her.

* * *

The laboratory was silent and dark. The only light came from the giant, flat screen on the wall opposite the man, whose face was partially illuminated by the artificial brightness. His grin curved up the side of his face like a scythe.

"You called for me?"

A shorter man with a partial mask still left on the side of his head had entered the room; green streaks under his eyes made him appear to be crying.

"He's taken the bait, keep an eye on him," the shadowed man commanded quietly.

He smirked as the other male bowed and left the room. He was alone again. The screen flickered once and went black.

* * *

**Author's Note: WOOT! Done:D**


	17. Darkness Approaching

Patros, a tall, thin man paced around the large, hollow cave, his footsteps echoed off the gray stone walls. He had a dark shadow underneath his right eye, because his left was hidden with the remains of his Hollow mask. His moustache matched the bluish-purple color of his hair. Two other Arrancar stood against opposite walls, their eyes following their leader's every move. A larger man with black hair and half a horned mask over his left eye stood with his arms crossed against the far wall. The other, smaller man with a shock of maroon hair had the remains of his mask on top of his head; a set of spare jaws. Patros snarled in frustration and pounded his fist against the stone wall.

"We were so close!" he howled, "That bastard knows how to work that god forsaken thing and I want him to tell me!"

"Patros," the larger henchmen rumbled, "You need to calm down, we're all frustrated and it won't help you to work up a fight here."

Patros slammed his fist against the wall again and gritted his teeth, "We're going to try again tonight! I _will_ get that stupid Shinigami to tell me how this blasted thing works!"

Ulquiorra lurked, safely concealed in the shadows high above the three Arrancar, keeping a careful watch.

* * *

Patros unzipped a patch of sky and stepped through, closely flanked by his two cronies. The three Arrancar looked down upon the Urahara Shoten while relaying the plan through their minds.

"Remember, no variation," Patros growled threateningly, the other two nodded.

The three rogue Arrancar bolted through the snowy sky, barely disturbing the softly drifting flakes as they fell. Ulquiorra flash stepped into view high above, solemnly watching the Arrancar like a hawk. His emerald green eyes never flicked anywhere else and he never blinked. Silently, he flash stepped again and vanished.

* * *

Urahara sat bolt upright, sensing the unusually high and rough reiatsu. Kanehara opened her eyes and looked up at him.

"Kisuke, wha-?" he cut her off,

"Stay here," he warned in a low voice,

"But what is it-?"

"_Stay!_" he ordered, glaring down at her warningly and quickly slipped into his normal clothing and bolted out of the room.

Kanehara sat up quickly and hurried to the window, pulling back the curtains. She saw the four members of her 'adoptive' family outside in the snow-covered lot preparing battle stances, but there was no one else to be seen. _What the hell?_ Kanehara wondered in confusion. Then she felt it. The reiatsu she felt was the same as it had been before, rough and harsh. She gasped for air, and tried her best to shrug off the overwhelming pressure. She quickly changed into more suitable clothing and dashed out the bedroom door and down the stairs. She fumbled with her shoes for a moment before dashing out the door as well.

The sight she was greeted with was horrible. Three creatures she had never laid eyes upon before were fighting the four Shoten workers. The one she was focusing on the most was the one fighting Urahara. She didn't know what these things were. They might have appeared to be human, but she knew in her gut that they weren't.

"Hoshi kogeki suru!" She commanded loudly, holding out her arms.

The sky may not have darkened noticibly, but she knew that her ability had worked.

"Sagittarius!" she shouted, pulling her arm back while aiming for the creature that was attacking Urahara.

She fired a bolt of reiatsu with surprising accuracy and grazed the thing's cheek. The fighting ceased for a moment between the two and both whipped their heads around to where she was standing. Urahara's eyes widened in mild horror while the creature narrowed his eyes in amusement and a grin curved up the side of his face like a scythe.

The creature lurched; Urahara leapt forward, "NO!" he roared.

Urahara was almost a second too late. He grabbed Kanehara firmly around the middle and pulled her backwards just as the creature's bright blast of cero flashed past her ear. The creature grinned again and fired up another blast of cero; Urahara flash stepped with Kanehara a fair distance away. A roar of malicious laughter accompanied the cero as it bolted towards them.

"Sing, Benihime!" Urahara shouted as he swung his zanpakto around, releasing a similar like energy towards the thing.

The explosion as the two cero blasts collided blew both Urahara and Kanehara backwards.

Urahara let go of Kanehara, "Get out of here, Satsuki!" he growled, glaring at her from over his shoulder for a split second.

A moment later, the malevolent creature zoomed towards them from out of the smoke, sneering darkly.

"RUN!" Urahara pushed Kanehara out of the way and parried the next attack from the man with the broken mask, "Get out of here!" he snarled again, gritting his teeth.

Kanehara stood for a moment, paralyzed and not knowing if she should obey Urahara or fight. Seeing him like this, she knew she had to get away, but that wouldn't stop her from fighting.

"Sagittarius!" she ordered again, re-summoning the bow.

She drew her hand back, pulling the light with it, and released, aiming for the creature. Well, she thought she did anyway. Someone hoisted her 'round the middle and took off with her. Kanehara panicked and struggled, trying to free herself from the grasp of the other. She was about to scream when a hand much darker than her own skin covered her mouth.

"Stupid girl!" a familiar female voice barked at her.

Kanehara stopped resisting and looked around at the person still holding her.

"Yoruichi!" she said, quite startled and surprised, "Why did you do that?!" Kanehara demanded, suddenly rounding on the darker woman as they landed safely on top of the Urahara Shoten.

"He told you to run, didn't he?! Why didn't you listen?!" Yoruichi snarled, narrowing her golden eyes at the teen, "This is too dangerous for you, you should've realized that!"

"I can fight!" Kanehara retaliated, her brilliantly green eyes had been reduced to slits, "I could've handled those things!"

"You don't even know what they are!" Yoruichi snapped, "How could you not have realized they were almost as powerful as Kisuke or myself?!"

Kanehara stopped, panting softly, "What are they?" she demanded.

"Those are Arrancar."

The blue-haired teen froze. The only sounds came from the battles raging below.

"Those are Arrancar?" she asked, her voice quiet and anxious.

"Yes," Yoruichi replied, "You understand now why you can't fight them?"

"No, but I still want to," Kanehara admitted, "I need to help Kis- Urahara-san. I need to help all of them; I can help! I can still fight!"

Kanehara's bravado was shattered as Yoruichi closed the distance between them with one stride and slapped her across the face. Kanehara froze again in shock. She raised a trembling hand to her cheek and touched it gingerly.

"You… Slapped me…" she uttered in disbelief, "Why…?"

"Because you were seeing red. You had to calm down," Yoruichi said quietly, "They are strong enough to handle themselves, don't you see?"

The two women looked down over the battles below, Kanehara's eyes never leaving Urahara.

"Look," Yoruichi spoke again, suspicion arising in her tone, "They're leaving…"

One by one the Arrancar retreated. The one Urahara had been fighting looked up at Kanehara, and he smirked darkly beneath his knife-sharp blue moustache. The look he gave her sent a cold shiver up her spine and a feeling of imminent doom. Urahara sheathed Benihime again and turned to look up at the two women, then strode quickly back inside.

* * *

Kanehara raced up the stairs and slid the door sideways hurriedly. Urahara stood with his back to her while staring out the window. He didn't move as Kanehara walked across the forest green rug and wooden floor to him. Kanehara touched his hand softly and he withdrew it and turned to face her. The look he gave her broke her heart more than yelling ever could. She internally wished he would yell at her, just so she wouldn't have to see that pain in his eyes.

"You disobeyed me," he spoke quietly, his eyes gazed solemnly into hers, "I told you not to get involved because I didn't want you hurt, and you didn't listen."

"You don't think I'm strong enough to keep myself safe?" Kanehara said, anger rising in her voice, "You didn't think I could fight them, did you?"

Urahara took her hand in both of his, "I _know_ you can't, the Arrancar are too strong. There was nothing I could do except try to keep you safe-"

Kanehara cut him off, "Is that why you haven't been training me? I'm a little rusty, but I'm _NOT WEAK._" she growled, narrowing her eyes.

"I don't think you'll be weak, I just don't want to run the risk of you getting hurt!" he growled.

She knew she was trying his patience, but Kanehara couldn't care less at the moment.

"So you're not training me because you're afraid I'll get hurt?! What-"

This time, it was Urahara who cut her off, "I'm afraid I'll hurt you, Satsuki! That's what I'm afraid of! That's why I haven't been training you!" he yelled, letting go of her hand and pulled off his hat, proceeding to run his hand distractedly through his hair.

Kanehara was silent; she'd lost her thunder in the shock of this sudden statement.

Urahara stayed facing the wall and sighed in defeat, "The damage is done," he murmured, turning back around to face her, "They saw me protecting you, they'll come for you I know it."

Kanehara remembered with clarity the maliciously triumphant look that the Arrancar had flashed her. She shivered unconsciously and Urahara strode back towards her and took her in his arms.

"Please, Satsuki, please don't do that again," he murmured softly, nuzzling her blue hair, "From now on, I'm not going to let you out of my sight until this whole matter is resolved."

Kanehara, relieved that their feud had been resolved somewhat, and returned the warm embrace.

"Promise me, Satsuki,"

"I promise, Kisuke. I won't do that again," she whispered back, closing her eyes.

She could feel his chest rise and fall with a sigh of relief, "Thank you," he whispered.

* * *

Kanehara sat on the roof of the Urahara Shoten, snowflakes sticking to her hair and eyelashes. Her slow and even breathing floated away on an unseen breeze like clouds. She heard snow crunching softly behind her and looked over her shoulder. Yoruichi stood with her arms folded across her chest, watching her.

"Aren't you a bit cold, Satsuki?" she asked, walking forwards and crouching down beside the teen.

"No, not that much, Yoruichi-san," she answered, shaking her head and dislodging a few tiny flakes.

Yoruichi sighed and smiled wryly, "Let's go take a bath, shall we? We can warm up," Yoruichi suggested, "And you can talk to me about what's on your mind," she suggested with a knowing smile.

Kanehara didn't even want to ask how she knew.

* * *

They sank into the hot spring that resided in the large open desert-like space underneath the shop. Kanehara wiggled her toes and sank a bit deeper so that her hair floated out around her like a cerulean veil.

"So, Satsuki," Yoruichi smiled, "Spill."

Kanehara sighed and twirled a lock of weightless blue hair around her index finger, "I don't want to be left out of the fighting," she began lamely, "I want to fight with you guys. I don't want to be a benchwarmer."

Yoruichi lowered herself further into the water while keeping her elbows on the edge of the spring, "I thought that might be what was on your mind," she said, her violet hair sticking to her shoulders and neck, "I'm guessing Kisuke said 'no', then?"

"You'd be guessing right," Kanehara sighed and closed her eyes, "There was something I wanted to ask you, Yoruichi-san,"

"Drop the honorifics and I'll listen."

Kanehara smiled lightly and opened her eyes again, "Would you train me?"

Yoruichi's smile faltered briefly, "Satsuki, Kisuke doesn't want-"

"We don't have to tell Kisuke, you know," the teen informed her, "Please, Yoruichi?"

Yoruichi surveyed the naked teen for a moment.

"Fine, we have a deal."

* * *

Patros perched himself on a rock shelf jutting out of the cave wall, smiling triumphantly.

"I have a plan," he informed his cronies who lurked like gargoyles in the shadows of the cave.

"You always do, Patros," sneered the larger Arrancar, "But what faulty one is it now?"

Patros shot a glare at the black-haired man, "My plan is to kidnap that blue-haired brat and _make_ that son of a bitch tell us," he snarled.

The other two paused.

"Actually, Patros," the small redhead began, "That isn't such a bad idea," he sniggered, "Maybe this one will work."

Ulquiorra unzipped a patch of air and stepped backwards into the darkness high above.

* * *

Ulquiorra arrived a moment later inside Las Noches, outside of the hall where his master waited. He raised his hand to the door and faced his open palm towards the crack where the two doors joined. They parted and opened noiselessly. Ulquiorra strode calmly inside and moved silently towards the head of the table where a brown-haired man watched him approach.

"Ulquiorra," the man said in a slow, languid drawl, "What have you observed our," he chuckled softly, " 'Test case' doing now?"

"Aizen-sama," the black-haired Arrancar began, "Patros has planned to kidnap a girl that Urahara Kisuke has been keeping with him, in order for Urahara to tell Patros how to operate the Hougyoku," Ulquiorra informed Aizen.

Aizen laughed humorlessly and rested his head in his left hand lazily, "What a smart guinea pig we have! Tell me, were the other two intrigued by this plan as well?"

"Yes, very much so, Aizen-sama."

The ex-Shinigami laughed again and ran his right hand through his hair, smoothing a stray lock back into place.

"Well, Ulquiorra," Aizen's crooked smile curved up his face, "It seems our little guinea pig has outlived his usefulness. Dispose of him and the other two, then," he smirked darkly, "Kidnap that girl. We're going to make Urahara talk."

* * *

Kanehara stood at her dresser, folding her pajamas from the night before when she saw over her shoulder in the reflection a certain blonde, perverted manager creeping towards her. Urahara wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her close.

"Hello, Satsuki," he grinned crookedly and chuckled as she tried to wiggle her way out of his arms.

"Kisuke! Lemme go! Grrrrr-" She managed to twist herself around and face him, his arms still clinging around her waist, "Yes?" she sighed exasperatedly, smiling.

"Nothing," he admitted, kissing her once, "I just wanted to see you," he kissed her again.

Kanehara blushed profusely and looked up into his blue-gray eyes, "And now you're going to kiss me?"

Urahara grinned as he did again kiss her, "Of course! You sound skeptical," another kiss, "Let me fix that."

Urahara moved his hands down to her hips and pushed her against the wall. He pressed his lips against hers with such a passion Kanehara was left momentarily breathless. She returned the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck as he held her hips tightly. Urahara parted her lips easily and he eagerly met her waiting tongue. Her breath hitched as his hands slowly began sliding up underneath her shirt. Urahara grinned and bit her lip gently and sliding his hands underneath her brazier. Kanehara pulled away suddenly, pressing her back against the wall, her was face only able to move an inch or so away from his.

"Kisuke, what if someone-" he cut her worry off with a swift kiss.

"Don't fret, no one will," he murmured, kissing her neck slowly.

She gave in and shivered with pleasure as his kisses went further and further south and she let out an involuntary moan. She didn't notice he had reappeared until Urahara came back up and began kissing her full on again.

A knock sounded at the door.

"_Shit!_" Kanehara whispered loudly, pulling her shirt back down hurriedly.

Urahara, being as swift as he was, had already arrived at the door. He slid it sideways and looked up at Tessai.

"Yes, Tessai?" he queried, cocking a blonde eyebrow and flashing his trademark crooked smile.

Tessai cleared his throat, "Manager, we have killed three Hollows since the Arrancar left," he began, "There may be more on their way, so I'd advise you to be on your guard."

"Of course, thank you Tessai," Urahara said, smiling.

Tessai's dark gaze flicked from Urahara, cool as a cucumber, to Kanehara, who was blushing furiously and still breathing hard. He hid an amused smirk and bowed, turning to leave. As he meandered down the stairs, Urahara slid the door shut again and turned to face the blue-haired teen, smiling in a cocky manner.

"You would make a very bad actress," he mused, striding back over to Kanehara, "You couldn't even keep a straight face."

Kanehara narrowed her emerald green eyes, "Well, excuse me! You just left me here after the best make-out session in the world and you expect me to be completely calm about it? In a split second, that's really hard to do," she finished, crossing her arms, "Speaking of hard…" she drifted, her eyes flicking down for a spit second, "Did Tessai fail to notice your little friend?"

The blonde laughed heartily, "No, I'm pretty sure he knew what was going on anyways though," he smirked smugly, "You really thought that was the best make-out session in the world?" Urahara cocked an eyebrow.

Kanehara hugged him tightly, "Of course, considering I have nothing to compare it to," she shrugged.

Urahara grinned and kissed her forehead.

* * *

High above Karakura Town, a thin black line appeared in the sky and split open horizontally, spreading wide to reveal three Arrancar. One very large Arrancar bared his massive incisors and cracked his knuckles.

"I can taste their blood already," he grunted, sniggering.

Ulquiorra glanced over at the largest Arrancar, "Yammy, control yourself until we get there," he murmured, "We don't want them to sense our reiatsu until then."

Yammy groaned like a child who had been denied his favorite treat.

A tall, leaner Arrancar with ocean blue hair crossed his arms and harrumphed, "Well, Ulquiorra, when do we start? I want to kill that strawberry brat from last time," he narrowed his ice blue eyes.

"Soon enough, Grimmjow," Ulquiorra spoke quietly, he seemed to be waiting for some unknown signal.The other two Arrancar rolled their eyes impatiently; Grimmjow growled softly.

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed slightly, "Now, we move," he spoke quietly.

All three Arrancar flash stepped out of sight.

* * *

**Author's note: That's all, folks! I planned to write a bit more in this chapter, but since you've all been SO PATIENT and WONDERFUL, I'm releasing this a bit early!! Terribly sorry for the delays!**


	18. Shadow Zone

_"__The constellation COMA BERENICES represents the beautiful hair of Queen Berenice of Egypt. She was so concerned for the safety of her husband Ptolemy III when he went off to war, that she vowed to cut off her glorious long hair as a sacrifice to Venus, should he be spared."_(Quote from Heavens-Above dot com) 

* * *

A terrible cry echoed around the heavens that could make the blood run cold. One by one and doubling every second, massive numbers of Hollow tearing their way through the barrier between the world of the living and that of the dead.

Patros looked up to the stony ceiling as he heard the tormented cries, a grin curving up the side of his mouth like a scythe.

"It's them, gentlemen," he said in a low voice, baring his teeth in a malicious smile.

The other two Arrancar nodded once, both wearing identical smirks, and followed their leader and flash stepped out of the cave.

In and out of visibility the three Arrancar dashed, following the mass of beasts towards Karakura Town. A strangled gasp alerted Patros and he whipped around, skidding to a halt in the air. The redheaded Arrancar had blood pouring down his front from a gaping hole in the middle of his chest. He choked on his own blood and died, slowly deteriorating in midair. Behind where the crony had fallen, the massive hunkering form of Yammy stood, grinning like a loon. The other crony vanished and reappeared quickly beside Patros.

"What are you doing, Yammy?!" Patros spat, a vein throbbing in his temple, "What the hell are you doing?!"

The behemoth barked a deep laugh and grinned malevolently, "We're to exterminate you," His grin grew slightly, "On the orders of Aizen-sama."

Yammy opened his mouth wide, allowing a bright cero ball to begin forming. Patros bolted left, dodging the powerful cero blast by an inch. Yammy shook with laughter again. A wrangled scream came from behind Patros. He whipped around to watch his other comrade disintegrate into the wind while Ulquiorra stood over the body, watching with merciless emerald eyes. Patros felt a bead of cold sweat trickle down the back of his neck. His heart was pounding in his head; he couldn't hear anything but the frantic beating. Ulquiorra gazed into Patros' eyes.

"Get rid of him," Ulquiorra commanded, turning and walking away.

Patros' eyes widened and he opened his mouth to scream. The echo of the dying shriek was just that. An echo. Patros had already dissipated into the wind.

* * *

Ishida sat on the edge of his bed, staring out the window at the bright, sunlit buildings of Karakura Town, already having finished the next three units in their math class. The sun's light penetrated his bedroom, too, making everything shine with a golden glow. The white walls were brighter than normal, and the navy blue curtains hanging on his window were pushed far to the sides. The window was slightly ajar and a pleasantly cool winter breeze brushed past his face; his raven hair fluttered slightly. Ishida blinked behind his glasses, watching a swallow dance up and down in the air, swooping this way and that, as though it were a fish in the sea. Suddenly, the swallow was gone. A streak of black was all Ishida had seen, and the Quincy teen sat bolt upright, waiting for the blur to come back.

There it was again! Ishida knew he wasn't seeing things. He snatched his cross bracelet off of his bedside table and dashed out of the flat, flying down the flight of stairs outside. He heard the blood-chilling cry of a Hollow. _Over there! _Ishida urged himself. He turned a sharp corner and saw the massive creature crouched low, sniffing the ground. As Ishida ran, the Hollow froze; catching the scent he seemed to have been looking for. The massive nightmare glanced to the running Ishida and roared again. The teen Quincy summoned his bow and took aim. The arrow flew with unnerving accuracy and hit the Hollow straight on. With another shriek, the Hollow disintegrated.

Ishida dropped his arm to his side and the bow vanished. He took a deep breath and turned to start walking back. _Only,_ he thought now, _I'm going to have a bit of trouble doing that…_ He took his battle stance and summoned again his Quincy bow.

The hulking behemoth that blocked Ishida's way boomed with laughter, "You think that toy can beat me, boy?" He jeered, baring his massive incisors in a terrifying grin.

Ishida gritted his teeth and drew back his arm again.

* * *

The glow from the lonely moon high above outside her barred window dimly lit the well-furnished place she was being held. Her new outfit that Aizen had ordered to be left for her reflected the moonbeams, the white fabric seemed to be it's own source of light. The red-haired girl sighed sadly, and looked up again towards the strange moon from another world. _I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun. I'm sorry, everyone. Don't come for me. Please._

* * *

Urahara's body tensed next to hers, and Kanehara glanced over concerned. The fried rice he had been eating for lunch seemed completely unimportant to him now.

"Kisuke?" she began, "What…" She paused as she saw the hard look in his eyes as he met her gaze.

"The Arrancar are back," he growled quietly, his left hand curling into a fist.

Kanehara felt a chill run down her spine. The word 'Arrancar' had triggered the memory that she had been trying to suppress. Those two dead grey eyes that seemed to root her to the spot with fear. She shivered involuntarily.

"Stay here," Urahara commanded in a low tone, rising and slipping back into his forest green coat.

Kanehara opened her mouth to protest, "But-"

"But nothing! You're staying here under watch," Urahara cut her off, giving her a stern look. He sighed, realizing how harsh he had sounded, and closed his eyes, "I'm sorry, please, Satsuki, stay here," He turned away and walked briskly to the stair near the front entrance. As he stepped down into his sandals he called out, "Jinta! Ururu!" The two children appeared at the foot of the stairs.

"Yes, Kisuke-san?" Ururu asked quietly, eyes as sad as ever.

"I want you both to make sure Satsuki doesn't leave. Keep a strict eye on her. When Yoruichi returns, tell her the same thing," he ordered quietly, "I'm leaving," Urahara turned without glancing back to Kanehara and met Tessai, who stood beside the opened door like a massive statue of a god.

Kanehara reached out her hand to protest, but the two were gone. She felt her stomach twist itself in knots as she thought of Urahara coming face to face with that creature once more. Kanehara sighed and held herself tightly, trying to reassure…

"Well, come on then," Jinta said, pulling at her shoulder gently, "We're moving you upstairs,"

Kanehara didn't have the willpower to argue.

* * *

Kanehara didn't know how long she had been sitting on their bed, and she couldn't be bothered to look. Her mind was a cinema playing over and over scenes that terrified her and made her shake her head trying to rid her mind of the pictures. Every scene had Urahara in it, and he wasn't winning either. "No," she moaned, "No, he's not going to lose. He can't," she groaned and covered her head. The pictures played on, seeming to mock her. Every scenario was worse than the last. "Stop it!" she commanded at herself, "Get yourself together! You can't lose it, or else something bad _will_happen!"

Finally, the movies began to dim, as though the theatre lights were coming back on. Kanehara sighed in frustration and looked around the room for the billionth time since she had been sent here. _Calm down,_ she told herself, _Breathe in and out and calm down._ Kanehara sat in silence, her mind now resting, and thought about how irrational her next decision would be.

Quiet as a mouse, she rose to her feet and tiptoed to the door and slid it open slowly and noiselessly. She tucked her cerulean hair behind her ear and continued down the stairs. _Where are Jinta and Ururu? _She wondered as she crept around the corner. _Almost there…_ And suddenly she was facedown on the hard, wooden floor.

"Oof!" she huffed as she regained her breathing, and tried to look at the two children who had taken her down.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Blue Hair?!" Jinta demanded, "The manager said you _stay put_!"

"Why would you want to risk both your lives?" Ururu asked quietly, tilting her head.

Kanehara opened her mouth to argue back, and Jinta punched her. The pain shot like a bullet through her cheek and she groaned. They got off of her back and she sat up, holding a hand to her cheek.

"Jinta, Ururu, what the hell was that for?!"

"Do you really think any of us wants to look into his eyes for the next hundred years if he loses you?!" Jinta spat, glaring at the teen.

Kanehara froze. _Hundred… Years…_ She watched shock form itself on both the children's faces, as they realized a fact that she wasn't supposed to know slipped out.

"Just how old… _is_Urahara-san?" she murmured quietly, her emerald eyes wide, "How old are you two…? Yoruichi-san…? Tessai…?" she could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

The shop workers exchanged uncertain glances.

Jinta swallowed and closed his eyes, "The manager is over three hundred years old,"

Kanehara's heart moved upwards and was pounding in her throat, her stomach twisting tightly, "Three… Hundred…" she closed her eyes and shook her head, "Oh my god."

Ururu reached out timidly to touch Kanehara's shoulder, mild concern written clearly on her face, "Satsuki-san…"

Kanehara stood, "I'll be up in my room," she said. She felt oddly detached from her body as she trudged up the stairs and rounded the corner to the door that lead to their room. She slid the door sideways and shut it just as slowly and quietly behind her.

From downstairs, she could hear Jinta and Ururu talking with another voice… _Yoruichi must have returned_, she thought dully. Kanehara sunk down, her back against the wall just below the window, drawing her knees close to her chest. She rested her head between her knees and closed her eyes, her hair falling in front of herself creating a cerulean curtain.

An odd, spine-tingling sound resonated around the empty room, not unlike the scratch of a record against something sharp. Kanehara looked up at once, startled and watched wide-eyed as a line appeared in thin air and spread apart. A swirling, black void was the background of a strangely sallow man, with green eyes and emerald streaks below them. His black hair was capped off to the left side with what looked like half a bony, horned helmet. Kanehara shrunk back against the wall as her flight-or-fight instinct kicked into high gear.

The creature smiled at the frightened teen. There was no pleasure or humour in it; the smile was just for show.

"Well," it began, "I might as well introduce myself. My name is Ulquiorra Schiffer and I've come to take you away on the orders of Aizen-sama. I trust you have heard of him."

Kanehara didn't acknowledge him. She had risen to her feet as he was speaking, her mind racing with scenarios of how she could escape.

"You're not going to escape, human. Come with me, don't make a fuss." Ulquiorra spoke calmly, holding out his hand.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Kanehara defended fiercely, her eyes were narrow emerald slits, "Don't you dare touch me!"

She could hear raised voices and footsteps outside her door; she could hear her name being called. Ulquiorra sighed and closed his eyes. When he opened them a moment later, he was smiling that detached smile.

"You really shouldn't make a fuss. Look what you've done to him," the corners of his mouth twitched as he snapped his fingers once. A holographic screen came into life, hovering over his right shoulder. Urahara was fighting the Arrancar who had given her that bone-chilling look, and losing. Kanehara's heart pounded in her head, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.

"No!" she cried, "No! Kisuke!"

Ulquiorra chuckled quietly, "If you come with me, no fuss involved, he won't be hurt. Your Urahara Kisuke will live."

The screen flicked closer in on the two men fighting. Urahara was losing his footing. He stumbled to the ground and dropped Benihime.

"No! Please, don't hurt him!" she cried, clutching at her chest, tears brimming in the corners of her eyes.

"Come with me, then," Ulquiorra repeated.

"Satsuki?! SATSUKI?! What's going on?! Are you alright?!" Yoruichi's frantic voice could be heard outside the door. Three sets of hands pounded on the door that wouldn't open.

Patros closed in on Urahara, his sword raised above his head, ready to strike…

"Fine! FINE! I'll come! I'll come!" Kanehara sobbed, begging, "Please! Don't hurt him! Don't hurt him!"

The Patros on the screen froze, and moved back two steps. The screen flickered and disappeared. Ulquiorra didn't waste a moment. Out of thin air, cords appeared and bound themselves tightly around Kanehara's wrists and mouth, gagging her. He grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her towards the black void that she knew lead to another dimension. In an instant the weird, dark space had closed and was gone.

"Satsuki! SATSUKI!"

* * *

The battle raged on below three Arrancar standing in the air. Grimmjow snarled, battle-hungry, while Yammy cracked his knuckles menacingly.

"Let's go," Ulquiorra commanded.

All three were gone in a flash.

Urahara gritted his teeth as he swung Benihime towards another large Hollow, releasing a large blast of crimson energy at it. It, like so many before it, dispersed with one last horrible roar. Ishida and Ichigo were tackling a large mass of approaching Hollows in the sky while Rukia slashed at an Arrancar with her zanpakto. Most of the Gotei Thirteen were there, except for Yamamoto and Kurotsuchi. Renji and Chad tackled Yammy, Yoruichi took on three Hollows at once, her vividly purple hair flying in the air, and Urahara took on another three Hollows. War was everywhere in the National park, and passers-by would only see Orihime, Chad, and Ishida fighting invisible things.

Urahara was delivered the killing strike to the last Hollow within his reach when he was suddenly enveloped inside a large, transparent, midnight-purple bubble. Whirling around to face the thing that was in the bubble with him, he growled low in his throat, bringing Benihime up to the ready. He had faced _this_Arrancar before. Ulquiorra looked slightly smug.

"What do you want, Arrancar?" Urahara demanded in a deadly low voice, "What do you want with me?"

"I want you to tell me how to operate the Hougyoku," Ulquiorra stated calmly, his emerald green eyes deadly serious.

"Good luck getting me to tell you," Urahara growled, "I'm not going to help Aizen," he snarled.

"I thought I would have to resort to this," Ulquiorra murmured and slid his arm as though opening a zipper.

A black line appeared inside the space in the untouchable bubble and opened. Inside was Kanehara, bound and gagged, tear-stricken and terrified.

"Satsuki!" Urahara cried, his heart wrenched itself in agony, "You bastard! I'll kill you!" He raised Benihime and prepared to strike the Espada, but Ulquiorra interrupted him.

"If you strike me, I only have to snap my fingers to kill her," he stated quietly, a coy smile playing on his lips, "Would you kill me, and kill her at the same time? Would you do that?" the smile grew a bit larger, "For the girl?"

Urahara heard Kanehara's whimpers and he seethed with loathing towards this other being, "You son of a BITCH! I'll kill you! I'll kill Aizen, too, for this!"

Ulquiorra waved his threats off, and smirked, "We'll be going then, if you don't mind," he stepped inside the black void with his back to Urahara, "If you change your mind, we'll be in Hueco Mundo waiting."

Kanehara's green eyes filled with fear and she struggled fruitlessly against her bonds. She tried screaming his name, but all that was heard were muffled sobs.

Urahara lunged for her, "Satsuki!" he shouted, but the void closed too quickly. He landed against the ground; the wind was knocked out of him, "No! SATSUKI!" he pounded the ground, clenching his eyes tight, "NO!" he roared._I'll kill you, Aizen! I'll kill you!_ He swore in vengeance.

Ichigo noticed the bubble vanish, and Urahara fall to the ground, swearing and shouting. _What went on? _He wondered, gritting his teeth as he finished off another Hollow. _Kuso!_

Urahara pushed himself off the ground, alone in a sea of hate. He glared up at the sky, breathing heavily. _I'll get you back, Satsuki, don't worry, and I'll kill Aizen in the process. I promise._

* * *

Ulquiorra had removed the ropes that bound her, and Kanehara dropped to the floor, gasping for air.

"Get up, you stupid human," he said coldly, kicking her arm stiffly, "You're going to be taken to your room."

_My room…_ she thought dejectedly. _What have I done? Kisuke… I'm sorry._ With those last few words in her mind, she locked away her heart. She was lead down a hallway that could've fit her entire apartment's complex in it and more, maybe the whole of Karakura town. Ulquiorra stopped halfway down, and pushed his palm flat against a section of the wall. It moved aside, rolling smoothly into the wall beside it. Inside was a dimly lit chamber. The room was well furnished, and it had an adjacent bedroom off the lounging area. _Was this all prepared for me? _She wondered dully. Kanehara stepped inside the room, feeling the empty gloom of it engulf her fully.

"You will reside here until your purpose has been filled. Then you will die. If your Urahara Kisuke _does_come for you, neither of you will leave alive," Ulquiorra stated matter-of-factly, "There is a new outfit for you to wear while you are here," he pointed a long, white and slender finger towards the darkened bedroom, "It's on your bed. Please put it on. I will return with your dinner in a few hours," he said quietly in his dull, dead tone.

Ulquiorra turned and left the room, the massive white stone door sliding shut behind him. Kanehara felt her stomach tear itself into pieces; the icy hand of depression gripped her heart once more and wouldn't let go. She strode slowly into the next room and saw in the moonlight from a solitary, barred window high above the 'outfit' Ulquiorra had referred to. She stroked the fabric; it was smooth, well made. It was white with black accents, like the other Arrancar's outfits.

* * *

She looked at herself in the reflection of the full-length mirror standing in the corner of the bedroom. She didn't recognize herself. Her eyes were dead; the light of life had gone from them. Her skin looked deathly pale in the light of the never-setting moon. She heard the grinding of the giant stone door in the other room and walked slowly to the doorway to watch a man she had never seen enter, flanked by Ulquiorra. The man smiled kindly, but Kanehara could sense a very hostile air about him, even though he was still many feet from her. He strode over, followed by Ulquiorra, and the stone door closed again.

He stopped in front of Kanehara and smiled kindly again, "Hello there, Miss Satsuki," his voice was melodiously low, chocolate to the ears, "I'm Aizen Souske, leader of all the Arrancar here in Hueco Mundo. I am very pleased you could join us," his deep brown eyes said differently, though. "Miss Satsuki," he began again, "You are a very beautiful girl, but I think you would be even more stunning if we were to do a little, ah…" Aizen drifted and reached over to her face, twirling a lock of cerulean hair around his index finger, "Adjustments. Would you like a haircut, Miss Satsuki?"

He moved around her and placed his hands on her shoulders, guiding her back towards the full-length mirror. "I assure you, you will look more beautiful than ever," Aizen smiled again, "Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Kanehara wanted to vomit. This man made her skin crawl in disgust. His voice was sickly sweet and his smile nearly drove her to hit him. But regardless of her own emotions, to keep her loved one safe, she nodded deftly, her mind a million miles away.

Aizen smiled and placed his cheek next to hers, "And best of all, by complying to my will, you're keeping Urahara Kisuke safe, isn't that right, Miss Satsuki?"

Ulquiorra stepped forward and placed a short dagger next to her neck, just below her chin and pulled in back slowly. Long strands of blue hair fell to the floor, curling like some strange cerulean snakes at her feet. A tear ran down her cheek as more of her hair fell to the ground, limp, dead. After what seemed to be an eternity to her, Kanehara's hair was now shorter than it had been in years.

Aizen placed his cheek next to hers again, and nuzzled it gently, "See? Don't you look beautiful now? Best of all, the more you listen to me the longer Urahara stays alive. Isn't that wonderful? Don't you look so sad now," he cooed, reaching his right hand around and rubbing her thumb across her left cheek to wipe away the stray tear, "You know you won't see him again, so what's to worry about?"

Aizen's face left hers and he lifted her right hand in his, and kissed it gently, "Good night, Miss Satsuki," he smiled warmly as he backed away, letting go of her hand gently.

The two men left the room, and the giant stone door rolled closed once again. Kanehara dropped to her knees and sobbed. She cried for what seemed to be hours. She would never know. The moon never set from this room. She rolled onto her side and choked slightly on her tears, coughing. _I will see him again…_ she thought quietly, as though they could hear her very thoughts, _I will see him again. Alive._

* * *

**Author's Note: Okay! I am SO SORRY for the wait! I've been kicking my butt into gear, but that wasn't enough. I'm so sorry, so here is chapter 17.5! Interview with Kanehara Satsuki and Urahara Kisuke!**

* * *

Kanehara clasped her hands on the table and looked straight into the camera, "Hello everyone! It's me, Kanehara."

Urahara tipped his hat to the camera, "And me, Urahara Kisuke: Sex in a Hat."

Kanehara smacked him upside the head and composed herself again, "As you know, our good friend Crystallized Water made the last chapter for questions addressed to us. Sadly, we only got six _really good _questions," she pouted, her green eyes quivering and filling with tears.

"Oh, Satsu-chan, cheer up! We can still answer those ones!" Urahara ruffled her short blue hair.

"AIZEN CUT OFF MY BEAUTIFULLY LONG BLUE HAIR!" she wailed, dropping her head into her arms and sobbing heavily.

Urahara cleared his throat, looking back into the camera, "Anyways, from Sammi C. we have three questions!" He held up the first letter and read one question aloud, "_Goes to Kisuke: __Besides Pretty Fly For A White Guy, can you tell me some more of your favourite songs?_"

From her face down position, Kanehara grumbled, "He has no taste in music. He's tone deaf. I can't believe I put that song on my iPod."

Urahara stared at the slumped form of the blue-haired teen, shocked that she could be so blunt about his musical preferences, "I…" he looked back at the camera, "I actually enjoy listening to Fall Out Boy. Their music is incredibly catchy, and of course, I also enjoy the Bleach soundtrack," He grinned crookedly, "This next question is for you, little miss Sunshine!" Urahara prodded Kanehara gently in the back, "_To Kanehara: What's your favourite animal and why?_"

Kanehara rested her chin on her hands and smiled slightly, "I love foxes," she admitted, closing her eyes, "They're incredibly clever and they're the most beautiful things!" She sat up energetically, "Did you know 'fox' in Spanish is 'raposa'?" Kanehara beamed, her chin-length blue hair bouncing about her face.

Urahara's smile broadened a bit. Seeing his loved one cheer up made him happy. "Now, the last question from Sammi C. is directed at both of us, '_To Both: How would you describe your relationship?_"

Kanehara looked thoughtful for a moment, "Our relationship would be…"

"Fun and carefree?" Urahara offered, raising his eyebrows.

"No… Not the word I'm looking for… It would be..."

"Lovingly happy?"

"No…." Kanehara paused, then snapped her fingers, "I've got it! Our relationship would be wrought with trouble!" She grinned broadly.

Urahara stopped and sweatdropped, "Wrought with… Trouble?"

"Yes!" The blue-haired teen nodded, "As soon as we _finally_ admitted our love for each other, the whole world has gone spiralling downwards, hasn't it? Aizen's taking over, I nearly died a few times, I'm stuck in a Hueco Mundo suite… It's just horrible!"

Urahara's head dropped down onto the desk in exasperation, "Yes, I suppose it has…" he sniffed sadly.

Kanehara grinned again and opened the next letter, "The next letter is from ROGMethos! '_This is for Urahara: Love your hat, but why, why wear the sandals, you do know it's the 21 century, buy some sketchers!'_" Kanehara barely hid her amused smile, and snickered behind her hand.

Urahara sat up and puffed out indignantly, "Well, the_obviously _the sandals attract beautiful women!" He hugged Kanehara to his side to prove his point, "And you just can't beat the comfort, they're so airy," he grinned crookedly.

Kanehara rolled her eyes, "The next question is for me," she smirked at Urahara, "_Does Urahara snore at night? You do share a room... You'd think the guy would have a spare room or something; a girl needs her own space!_" Kanehara laughed loudly.

"Yeah, he does, actually," Kanehara snickered, "Why did Kisuke put me in his room? 'Cause he's a pervert," She stated simply, shrugging.

"I don't snore!" Urahara interjected, frowning with a slight pout forming on his face, "And you're calling _me _the pervert?" a smug grin grew on his face, "I seem to recall someone last night _begging _for me to-"

"On to the next question!" Kanehara quickly cut him off; her face was beet red, "Uh... Um… This one is to both of us, '_You finally smooched, what as it like!?_'"

Urahara grinned again, pleased with her reaction, "I thought it was wonderful," he pulled his hat lower over his eyes, "She's actually a very good kisser!"

Kanehara blushed again, "Well… I… Well, you know!" she flustered, giggling slightly and blushing a shade darker, "It was great!"

Urahara's grin broadened as he pulled out the last letter from the envelope, "This last question is from s.e.x.y. kitty. Nice name," he said thoughtfully, "It's to both of us, '_Are you guys gonna have sex or what?_'."

Kanehara's mouth dropped, "Wow, blunt much?!" she muttered, blushing (if at all possible) even darker.

"We will at the end of the story," Urahara stated, folding the letter back up and slipping it back into the envelope.

"KISUKE!"

"What? We will! It won't be written anywhere, but it will definitely be implied!" The manager grinned impishly.

"That's it! I'm shutting the camera off so I can beat you to a proper pulp!" Kanehara seethed, reaching for the camera,

"Thanks for watching everyone!" Urahara called out from behind Kanehara.

* * *


	19. Serpent in the Stars

Kanehara lay on the floor, having refused to even touch the bed provided for her. She awoke, stiff from sleeping on the cold, marble ground, and opened her eyes slowly. Kanehara raised a hand, almost wondering if the haircut had been a dream. It hadn't been. She gripped a clump of her hair angrily and gritted her teeth. _Now isn't the time to be angry with Aizen,_ she chided herself, _Take a look around and see what you can see!_

The teen stood, adjusted the fitted white garments, and looked around. She walked the length on the room and crossed into the lounging area. Her fingertips ran across the smoothingly chilling wall as she searched for some kind of opening, a crack, perhaps, or maybe the edge of a compartment. After fifteen minutes of fruitless searching, _Was it fifteen?_, she wondered, Kanehara gave up and slumped to the floor, her back against the wall.

Days turned into weeks, and the same pattern of events happened every day: Kanehara would wake up to the sound of the enormous stone door sliding away, Ulquiorra bringing her her meals on a trolley, accompanied by a brainless drone of some sort, and spending the rest of her time pacing, sitting, or staring out of her window high above. But during those endless pacing sessions, Kanehara was putting together a plan to escape.

* * *

Urahara had been in and out of anger and depression for over a week. Jinta was worried. He hadn't seen the manager like this in all the time he'd known him. He knew Urahara was beating himself up over losing Kanehara; they all were in some ways. They missed her terribly and hated Aizen even more. Jinta sighed and sat down across from him at the table. Urahara didn't even look up at him.

"What is it, Jinta?" he asked solemnly, his hat shadowing his face.

"Get her back," Jinta said firmly, "Get her back, because we all need her, not just you."

Urahara looked up. The fierceness in the boy's tone matched perfectly the fire blazing in his eyes. The manager was taken aback. "I would, Jinta, but breaking into Las Noches is difficult enough, without having me to fight Arrancar along the way," he sighed, "I'm trying to put a plan together." He admitted, "It's not working."

"Then don't make one!" the redhead glared, "Just go in and save her! Kick that bas-" Jinta was scolded by Urahara for using that word, "Ass! Kick it good! Bring her back, Manager."

Urahara watched the boy curiously for a moment, and then stood up, "You're right."

Jinta began to nod, and then stopped. He never won arguments easily with Urahara.

"But first, Ichigo and the others need to go and rescue Orihime," the blonde looked towards the front entrance, "They'll be here in a moment."

No sooner than he had spoken that, a familiar redhead entered the building.

* * *

One day, or was it night?, the colossal door grinded open at a time that was unusual, Kanehara noticed as she walked out of her bedroom. An Arrancar she had not seen before strode in, and the door slid closed behind him. He was tall, slim, and had icy blue hair that perfectly matched his eyes. His hole was located where a navel should have been and the remainder of his mask was a piece of jaw on the left side of his face. Kanehara eyed the stranger warily. _Hoshi kogeki suru… Just incase…_

"So," the thing began, "You're the fresh meat?" Kanehara's body tensed as he spoke, "Heh, there's another one like you here, only not as succulent-looking."

Her intuition told her that this man was not a friend, or a neutral, like Ulquiorra, but someone to be feared, feared very greatly.

"I'm being rude," his grin broadened, "I'm the sixth Espada, Grimmjow Jagerjaques," he cocked an eyebrow.

"You know who I am," Kanehara uttered stiffly, she did not want to engage in conversation.

Grimmjow grinned and narrowed his eyes in amusement, "Let's play a game," he said coyly, taking a step closer to Kanehara.

"No thank you," Kanehara backed a step away, trying to maintain a good distance between herself and Grimmjow.

"Come on, it'll be fun," Grimmjow's face broke into an insane grin.

"No!" Kanehara shouted, "Get away from me!"

"Come on!" The Arrancar appeared in a split second point-blank and shoved her against the wall, baring his teeth in a maniacal smile, and gripped her throat tightly while pressing his body fiercely against hers.

"Taurus!" Kanehara choked out, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes.

Grimmjow looked up, something caught his attention, and he saw the ball of reiatsu dart to Kanehara's struggling body and vanish. Suddenly and with great force, he was thrown off and against the opposite wall. The stone shattered behind him like glass and he dropped to the ground, stunned.

Grimmjow narrowed his eyes, "You little bitch," he snarled, "You'll pay for that!"

He raised his hand to summon a ball of cero when the familiar grinding of the stone door opening made them both stop and stare. Ulquiorra stepped inside, flanked by Yammy. Ulquiorra looked from Grimmjow to Kanehara, then back.

"I thought I felt you here," Ulquiorra said quietly, "Grimmjow, she is a hostage, and there is no need for you to even associate yourself with her." He murmured, "She's worthless after we find out how to work the Hougyoku."

Kanehara glared at the smaller, thinner Arrancar. _You bastard… _She growled mentally.

"Heh," Grimmjow sniggered, "You seem pretty damned attached to her yourself, Ulquiorra,"

"Don't associate me with you," Ulquiorra murmured, "This is nothing. Leave Grimmjow, before things get ugly."

"Things already were ugly," Grimmjow muttered darkly under his breath.

The corners of Ulquiorra's mouth turned upwards in mild amusement, "Because you were losing to an adolescent human girl?" Grimmjow was at Ulquiorra's throat faster than a bullet, "I told you, Grimmjow, leave." He cast his right hand sideways and Grimmjow flew to the door, crashing into it.

Yammy cracked his knuckles again, "Do you want me to finish him?" the giant asked, baring his massive teeth in a twisted smile.

Ulquiorra shook his head, "We don't need to worry about him anymore. He'll be on his way shortly."

Grimmjow flushed in anger. Humiliated and defeated, the panther stalked away with the proverbial tail between his legs. Kanehara's gaze was on Ulquiorra. Her mind was reeling with scenarios of what Ulquiorra might have been doing in the first place to even _think_ of stepping into her room… But before she could ask him, Ulquiorra turned and walked out of the door. Yammy, with a last look back at her, followed Ulquiorra back out of the room. Kanehara was alone again. She stared at the stretch of blank wall she knew to be the door, waiting to see if anybody else would come in, but the door remained still and silent. She sat down on a large white leather sofa and clasped her hands, thinking about what Grimmjow said.

"_Heh, there's another one like you here, only not as succulent-looking."_

Kanehara sat up straight. _Another one like me?_ She wondered, cautiously, as though the thought would flee at the very mention of her next thought, _Another human?_ She scarcely dared to believe herself. _Grimmjow said there was another one like me, only not as succulent-looking… That must mean there's another female human here! I have to find her! Nobody should ever end up here, no matter what it is that brings them. _Kanehara rose to her feet and walked briskly back to her bedroom.

_If there _is _someone else here, then she must be special, too. There's no way Aizen would want just anyone. Aizen will be coming here to check on me, to see if anything has been compromised, and most likely after he punished Grimmjow. They _have _to keep me alive, otherwise Kisuke would never give tell them how to use the Hougyoku. _As Kanehara paced, her plan she had thought up before was growing arms and legs now, becoming more elaborate. After several more minutes of feverish circling, Kanehara stood still. _Now, we wait. _"Gemini."_  
_

* * *

Urahara knelt down on one of the wooden beams he had put in the rock face to open the door to Hueco Mundo, to let Ichigo and the others though to rescue Orihime, and began to chant once more. "My right hand is the stone that bridges worlds, my left hand is the blade that binds reality," A line appeared in midair, connecting the two beams, and a light wind picked up, "The black haired shepherd is hung from a chair, stratus clouds form, and I strike down the ibis!"

The pitch black line spread open suddenly, making a sound like a record scratch. Urahara stood up. _I'm coming, Satsuki. _He leapt from the wood and flew through the air towards the void. As soon as he was through, the void closed shut behind him.

* * *

It didn't take long for Aizen to make his way down the marble corridor and open Kanehara's door. She sat in a chair, watching the door grind open. Aizen entered the room and smiled.

"Ah, Miss Satsuki," he began, taking a step towards her, "I see you are unharmed,"

Kanehara smiled and nodded, "Thank you for coming to check on me, Aizen-sama, I am alright, as you can see."

Aizen nodded and glanced around the room, no doubtedly making sure that there was no chance that Kanehara might escape because of damage done in the earlier battle. "I can see that you had a bit of a scrimmage with Grimmjow, did he hurt you?"

"No sir," Kanehara shook her head, "He didn't put a scratch on me."

"So, that wall is damaged because of you?"

"That would be correct."

Aizen looked thoughtful for a moment, then smiled, "Very good, Miss Satsuki," he patted her head, "You must be very strong to have done that. But now go to sleep," he began walking back towards the door, "Strong girls need their rest, you know." As he placed his palm against the wall, he glanced back over his shoulder, "I appreciate your warming up to me, Miss Satsuki; things will be much easier this way."

Kanehara nodded and gave a strained smile, "I'm doing my best."

Kanehara watched the whole ordeal from her hold on the wall high above, hidden in a shadowy corner. She had managed to shatter a few hand and foot holes with a few arrows from Sagittarius, and now she was watching her double handle Aizen. Aizen approached the door to leave. He placed his palm flat against the door.

"I appreciate your warming up to me, Miss Satsuki; things will be much easier this way."

_Aquarius, _she thought as she prepared to drop from her hiding place. The water particles in the air pulled together tight around her skin, as a wet suit would, and became transparent along with her. She was completely invisible. Yoruichi's training to help Kanehara to hide her reiatsu would become extremely important for the next vital moments. Aizen slid the door sideways with a heavy grinding and stepped through. _Now! _Kanehara dropped silently from the wall, her knees buckling easily beneath her so she wouldn't hurt herself. She wasted no time and darted through the slit just wider than her still between the door and the wall. She was out. Kanehara followed Aizen at a distance, so her breathing, no matter how silent, wouldn't alert him to where she was. Aizen kept walking down corridor after corridor; Kanehara didn't know when he would finally reach his office. After a few more turns, Aizen stopped, and placed his palm flat against another wall and entered the room the sliding door revealed.

Kanehara followed him closely, and the door ground shut behind her. _Ophiuchus._ A small but powerful dagger materialized in her hand, the hilt resembled a serpent. She was in a darkened room with a monitor the size of half the room on the wall adjacent from them. Aizen sat down in his chair and pressed a fiber-optics button in mid air. The monitor flickered to life. On the screen was a man with chin length pink hair and sharp rimmed glasses that gave a professional appearance.

"Szayel Aporro," Aizen began, "Have you dealt with the two in your dungeon?"

Aporro smirked, "Not entirely, Aizen-sama," he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, the glasses caught a glare on a light somewhere in the room, "They absolutely ruined my outfit in the fight, but they are too weak to resist much longer. This vice-captain you told us about is not as clever or as good a fighter as you said he was, but the Quincy brat is better."

_Quincy?! Ishida?! But… Why would he be here? And with a vice-captain?! _Aizen's face, which was lit from the electronic glow emitted by the monitor, did not look amused, "Finish them off quickly, Apporo, or you will be."

Aporro bowed and the screen flicked off. Kanehara slunk a step closer to the oversized black chair where the maniacal bastard sat. Aizen had his fingers steepled with his chin resting in them. As though something caught his eye, his eyes glanced towards Kanehara and for a moment she could swear those piercing brown eyes saw past her invisibility and knew she was there. Even so, Kanehara remained crouched like a tiger ready to pounce on its unwitting prey. Aizen's eyes flicked back and he closed them, seemingly in thought. _Now's my chance! _Kanehara sprung silently from her crouched position and pulled the dagger against his throat.

But the blade halted an inch before it touched skin. Aizen's hand was over top of her own clenched against the hilt.

"You think I, Aizen Souske, who outwitted all of Seireitei could be outwitted by an adolescent girl?" Aizen gripped her hand tightly and with one swift movement, threw her over himself against the wall nearest the door.

Kanehara cringed as she collided with the stone and fell forward, dropping Ophiuchus and losing Aquarius' cloak. She looked up at him with distaste, "How did you know?"

"You got me with your double act, and I don't know how you escaped from your cell, but there was no way you could hide your reiatsu from me forever." Aizen sneered down at her, taking another step forward, "And now, my dear," he began and narrowed his eyes, "You will die."

He raised his hand and shot a pulse of reiatsu at her, but Kanehara dodged. The wall behind her exploded as the pulse hit it. _He's using kido! _She realized with horror, _And without incantations! _Kanehara knew this would go downhill very quickly if she didn't think fast. She scanned the room as she dodged another kido spell for anything that might help her. She didn't see another spell coming her way. The pulse collided with her and she slammed into the wall so hard a spider web of cracks splintered out from where her body was. Kanehara gasped in agony and crumpled forward, lying on the ground. She could see from the corner of her eye that Aizen had pulled something from a drawer. She opened her eyes wider to see what it was. Her hair. _That bastard kept my hair! _Kanehara thought with loathing as he pressed it to his nose and took a deep breath. Aizen saw the murderous intent in her eyes and chuckled, sprinkling the cerulean hair around himself.

Then Kanehara realized something, and Aizen Souske had been outwitted again. Aizen took a step towards her, and she could see a few strands of hair clung to the fabric of his clothing.

Kanehara got up, her back was on fire, and stood in a battle stance with Ophiuchus back in her hand. Aizen let out a cold, mirthless laugh.

"You don't learn, do you?" his smile curved sharply up the side of his face, "Just die when you're supposed to."

_Stall him._ "If I die, Kisuke will never help you."

"Oh, we'll find a way. Maybe showing him what we'll do to your dead body if he doesn't," the grin broadened.

Kanehara glared and jumped at him suddenly, swiping with Ophiuchus. Aizen stepped backwards to avoid the blade, backwards into the fallen hair.

"You really must work on that you know," he said, narrowing his eyes in amusement,

Kanehara wasn't listening, never breaking eye contact with the sick son of a bitch; she concentrated on super charging the lost bits of herself with reiatsu. Aizen felt the pulse a moment too late, his eyes widened in shock. He never had a chance to react. The hair exploded in bright cyan flames all around and Aizen. He leapt backwards and swatted at the fire on himself, but to no avail. The more he swatted and danced around, the more the flames spread and grew. Kanehara summoned Sagittarius and drew back Ophiuchus in it. She fired with amazing accuracy and missed. Aizen was gone. So was the fire. Kanehara was dumbfounded for a split second before she realized that he was behind her. She leapt aside in the nick of time. He slashed at her with his zanpakto. She saw him full on as she landed a few feet away. His entire body was charred, melted and smoking. He may have gotten rid of the flames, but the damage had been done. He lunged at her and Kanehara ducked to the side. Her knees buckled beneath her and she stumbled to the stone floor. Aizen took his opportunity and struck.

Kanehara clenched her eyes shut and heard steel collide with steel. She quickly opened her eyes and saw a familiar green-clad man standing in front of her.

"Kisuke!" she cried, getting to her feet quickly, overjoyed to see him again.

"Satsuki, stay behind me," He ordered over his shoulder. It was hard enough for him not to embrace her at the moment.

Kanehara was unwilling to disobey and she remained still, re-summoning Ophiuchus into her hand. Kisuke raised Benihime and held her in battle stance. Aizen barked with laughter. The putrid stench of his partially melted body was filling the room gradually.

"So, Urahara," he began, "When was the last time we clashed swords?"

"Many centuries ago, Aizen," Urahara murmured darkly, "And I won."

Aizen snorted and raised his zanpakto again. Urahara tensed his body, "Satsuki, stay there. I won't let him hurt you again," Benihime was raised another few inches, "BANKAI!" Urahara commanded.

His reiatsu surged and Kanehara, being in such close proximity, couldn't breathe for a moment. All the pain the adrenaline had been suppressing came back at her full force. The last thing she remembered seeing was Urahara surrounded by red, and then her vision blacked out. Kanehara fell to the floor in a faint.

* * *

When next Kanehara came to; she felt warmth all around her and opened her eyes groggily. She blinked a few times as her vision focused itself and she heard a loud cry of joy.

"She's awake! She's awake!"

Partially focused shapes flew into her line of vision and one clasped her hand tightly.

"Kisu..ke…" she mumbled, blinking again to the green blur that held her hand.

"I'm here, I'm here," Urahara murmured with a smile.

She flung herself at Urahara and wrapped her arms around him tightly, very unwilling to let go. She felt the embrace returned and she began to sob. Urahara stroked her hair and shushed her gently, and she could feel his shoulders shake a bit. She pulled back and looked at him, beaming and wiping away her tears furiously.

"I was so scared, I thought he was going to kill me, and I would never see you again!" she cried, a fresh set of tears rolled down her cheeks.

Urahara wiped them away with his thumb, "Don't worry about anything anymore, Satsuki, you're safe."

Jinta and Ururu both flung themselves at the reunited couple and clutched tightly.

"We missed you so much!" Ururu cried quietly, resting her head on Kanehara's shoulder. Jinta nodded in agreement.

Kanehara was overwhelmed and began crying again. The group was lifted up suddenly into a bone breaking hug. Tessai's sobs were so loud, they sounded like thunder. Tessai eventually set them down to much protesting from Jinta and Ururu, and the children let go as well. Urahara pulled Kanehara closer to his body and sat her in his lap, holding her tightly.

"Satsuki," he began softly, as though he didn't know where to begin, "The Gotei Thirteen have been ordered into Las Noches to apprehend Aizen and his crew," he paused, "And until all of them have either been killed or captured, I fear about your safety."

Kanehara looked up at him curiously.

Urahara closed his eyes and sighed, "Orihime was captured by Aizen as well for her powers," Kanehara's jaw dropped, she didn't think that she would have been right, "Seireitei had nothing to prove she didn't leave with him on her own accord, so they did nothing. But after you were kidnapped too, they had the authority to storm Hueco Mundo and take Aizen down." He paused, "I need you to stay here in Seireitei for a while."

Kanehara looked confused for a moment, "But, this is Karakura Town! We're not even close to Seireitei!"

"Karakura Town is currently _in _Seireitei, on the outskirts of Rukongai. There is an elaborate double of Karakura Town where the real town used to be. It's for safety purposes," he cut her off and spoke again, "And everyone is safely asleep. This is where you'll be the safest right now," he continued, "I have to go now; I've almost used up my welcome here."

"But why can't you stay?" Kanehara pleaded, knowing she sounded incredibly selfish, clutching Urahara's hand with both of hers.

Urahara closed his eyes, "Satsuki, I can't." he looked away, "I was forbidden many years ago to even set foot in Seireitei because of the Hougyoku. But you will be safe here, and there are Shinigami who will protect you-"

"I don't want to be anywhere you aren't!"

Urahara sighed again and clutched her tightly against himself, "I don't want to leave you either, Satsuki, but this has to happen right now."

He stood and pulled her up with him, then held her shoulders tightly and looked down into her eyes, "Before I leave, I have to tell you something about your father, Satsuki."

Kanehara froze and looked more intensely up at her lover, "My father?! What about him?!" she queried anxiously.

"That picture you have of your family, up on your dresser," He glanced over her shoulder quickly before continuing, "I recognized him in the picture, and now I know why. Your father and I were old comra-"

Urahara was cut off by Tessai putting his massive hand on his shoulder, Manager, we must leave now."

Urahara opened his mouth to speak, but looked back at Kanehara, "Satsuki, don't worry. Everything will be fine, I'll explain afterwards. I love you," he said softly at the end, and kissed her forehead, then her lips.

"But Kisuke, wai-!" Kanehara stopped and tired to smile bravely, as tears stung the corners of her eyes, "I love you, too. Be careful."

After one last tight embrace, Urahara's eyes burned fiercely for a moment, and then his face was an expressionless mask.

As she watched Urahara and Tessai vanish out the front doors, she began to think of her parents again and had a million questions now about her dead father. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around. There stood a boy about as tall as her with short black hair. He wore a comforting, yet slightly dopey smile.

"He'll be okay, Kanehara-san," the boy said kindly, "He's stronger than you think."

"Who are you?" Kanehara asked, quickly wiping her tears away.

"My name is Yamada Hanatarou, pleased to meet you." Hanatarou took her by the shoulders and led her out the front door, "We're going to head up to Seireitei, okay?"

Kanehara nodded, gracious for the company to help her cope with everything that had just happened.

* * *

**Author's Note: I do apologize for the extremely long wait, but the fates decided I should have a rough couple of weeks! I'm finally getting my head on straight and I have a laptop! Woot woot! I must apologize for another thing, too. I didn't read over Chapter 18 when I should have and I left a very vital part in the wrong order. Orihime wasn't supposed to go to Hueco Mundo then show up in a battle scene, so I apologize again. Another apology: I changed Gemini. Gemini now makes a Kanehara double.**

Phew. So much apologizing! I hope you enjoyed the chapter everyone! (Now for those fanfics _I'm _reading, you'd better update! Plus: Sammi C., don't forget about your FDA!) :) Good speed, everyone!  



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